Destiny
by Khandy Raynne
Summary: Bulma is Frieza's brain. Vegeta is Frieza's brawn. Together they are Frieza's most dangerous weapons. When they meet, they begin to go through significant psychological and physical changes. Whether these changes are for better or for worse remains to be seen.
1. 1: Separate Lives

**Destiny**

**Chapter 1: Separate Lives**

* * *

A lavender-haired teenager ran as fast as her legs could carry her through the corridors of a large ship. She shot a ray gun at the armored soldiers who tried to stop her. She continued running even after her lungs began to burn. She ran all the way until she came to what looked like a garage door. She pressed the button to open the large door. She leaned against the wall as the lights went out in the hallway. The red emergency lights soon flickered on just as the door opened enough for the girl to slide through.

She entered the hangar of the ship and glanced around quickly. It was almost completely devoid of any type of ships. She found one small space pod sitting off to the side. Footsteps could be heard from the hallway behind her. She turned and shot the lock on the door. It slid shut quickly. Putting the gun away, she ran to the lone space pod. The pod did not seem to be functional.

_Shit! How is it possible that nothing in this damn hangar works_! The teenager tried her best to get it open. She looked up quickly as she heard the hangar's door being pried open. She began almost begging the pod to give a sign of any sort of life. The second it started, the hangar door was opened and soldiers flooded in. Before the space pod could close, a chubby pink hand yanked the teenager out by her neck and threw her to the metal floor.

"Thirty-three men," an effeminate, yet strangely masculine voice said. "That's a new record for you, Bulma."

The teenager, known as Bulma, simply smirked as she rubbed her neck. She glared up at the owner of the raspy voice. "You know me, Frieza. I only live to impress," she said. Her words earned a slap from the chubby pink hand.

"You will address Lord Frieza properly, girl!" a fat, pink, spiked blob with purple lips yelled down at her, spraying her with his saliva.

Bulma held her cheek, still feeling the sting of the slap. She could already imagine the enormous bruise that was starting to form. She heard footsteps coming towards her and looked up at the one known as Frieza. He was small and did not look intimidating in the least. However, Bulma could feel his powerful aura. She knew he was not to be messed with, but she paid that no mind.

"Dodoria, what have I said about striking her like that?" Frieza glared at Dodoria. The fat one straightened up immediately, mumbling his apologies. Frieza rolled his eyes and looked back down at Bulma. "Stand up, Bulma."

She begrudgingly got to her feet, spitting blood at Dodoria's feet. She smiled as he growled obscenities at her. Then Bulma turned her sight back on Frieza. She was only a little taller than him, but that was not saying much as she was in no way statuesque. She watched as his eyes raked over her body with intrigue.

"You do know how much I hate to punish you, don't you?" Frieza's eyes made it back up to her face.

Suddenly feeling dirty under his gaze, Bulma shrugged and crossed her arms. "I stopped caring long ago, Frieza. Nothing you do fazes me anymore."

Frieza simply smiled at her. He snapped his fingers and two guards grabbed Bulma by the arms. She already knew where she was headed. She would be taken down to the bowels of the ship, stripped bare, and hung by her arms. After that she would be sprayed with hot water until her skin was raw and then whipped. That was her punishment for trying to escape.

That was her life.

* * *

A small girl with wild hair that was wild and unruly was squatting over a curious sight. She was looking down at the body of one of the inhabitants of the planet. There was a hole blasted through the native's red head. From the looks of it, what had been inside this person's head was incinerated from the blast. The girl reached forward to touch the purple stuff that oozed around the sides of the hole. She'd seen plenty of dead bodies in her young life, but this particular species had the weirdest way of dying.

"Kinomi! Don't touch that! Who knows what kinds of diseases these creatures carry!" a gruff voice yelled from her left.

The girl stood up. "I just wanted to see what was inside, Nappa!" Kinomi crossed her arms and walked over to the much larger man, stepping carelessly on the dead bodies surrounding the area. He made her look smaller than she actually was. "Are we done here? These guys stink and my nose is starting to hurt."

Nappa sighed. _Why did I get stuck babysitting today_? He watched Kinomi rub her nose. She was only 15 but she was a very competent fighter, if not a little careless. She literally had to have the sense beaten into her by her eldest brother.

"Come on, Kinomi. Let's regroup." Nappa took to the sky. The young girl followed after him.

As they flew, she did twists and turns around him while he just flew straight. She stopped right in front of him, nearly scaring him out of the sky. She just laughed and continued flying. Nappa rolled his eyes and followed after, growling low in his throat. They soon came to an area where eight circular pods had created eight separate craters. Four other people were already milling about the area. Nappa and Kinomi landed next to them.

"Hey, Nappa!"

"Kakarrot, do you always have to yell?"

"Well, I'm just happy to see him is all. You never know what could happen while we're separated, Raditz."

"Leave him alone, Raditz. Kakarrot's just a naturally caring guy."

"Don't take up for him, Chichi. You're just as bad."

"Hey! We can't all be bloodthirsty mongrels like you, Turles. I'll never understand how you and Raditz even come from the same gene pool as Kakarrot. Especially you, Turles. You're his identical twin. You have the exact same DNA. I guess you're just from the evil side of the uterus," the girl with a long black ponytail said. She was older than Kinomi and smiled when she saw the younger girl.

"And Kakarrot is from the stupid side," Turles shot back. He and Kakarrot were indeed identical, but were as different as night and day. Looks-wise, the only way one could tell them apart was their difference in skin tone; Turles was a bit more tan than Kakarrot. That and their dispositions were radically different. While Turles was a perpetual frowner, Kakarrot wore a smile most of the time and was not the sharpest tool in the shed.

"I'm telling you Kakarrot was dropped on his head as a baby, Chichi. That's the only plausible explanation," Raditz joked.

"I'm still here, guys," Kakarrot said. He turned his attention back to Nappa and Kinomi. "Vegeta's not with you two?"

Kinomi unfurled her tail from around her waist. "Obviously not. He's off somewhere with _**MY**_ twin; probably teaching the idiot how to make a proper kill," she said with a snort.

"Kinomi, you should not speak of your brothers in such a way," Nappa said sternly.

"Oh please, Nappa! We all know Tarble's hopeless. He's more interested in his machines and books than fighting. What good's that stuff gonna do for him?" she complained.

"A lot more good than running your trap will. One of you has to at least use your brain." A shadow appeared over Kinomi. She glanced over her right shoulder to see both her brothers descending. Both of them were taller than her, but still shorter than the rest of the Saiyans except Chichi. Both had hair that like hers; black hair that appeared almost brown in the light and that defied gravity, the only difference being that Kinomi had a lot more hair. The one who had spoken was the tallest and the oldest: Vegeta. Kinomi stuck her nose in the air and looked away from her brothers. Tarble walked over to the group while Vegeta stomped over to his own pod.

"How did it go, Tarble?" Chichi asked.

Tarble shrugged, glancing over at his brother. "Not too well, I suppose. Geta's a bit angry with me," he said quietly. He felt a hand go upside the back of his head and flinched. He glared over at his sister. "What was that for?" he yelled at her.

Kinomi crossed her arms. "Don't shrink up like that! If you messed up, so what? Geta isn't gonna kill you for that!" she yelled back.

"Hey!" Everyone turned to look at the man in question. "Shut up! Get in your pods! And you two, stop calling me that!" Vegeta glared at his younger brother and sister. Tarble nodded quickly and Kinomi stuck her tongue out at him.

Nappa walked over to Vegeta's pod as the group dispersed to head to their own pods. "Should I alert Frieza of our return?" he asked.

"Hn," Vegeta said as he sat down roughly in the space pod. Nappa walked away as the door began to close.

As the other seven pods took off into the sky, Vegeta crossed his arms. He always wanted to be the last off the planet. Nappa fought adamantly against it since he was still technically Vegeta's bodyguard. One look from the diminutive one settled that argument quickly enough.

Vegeta fashioned himself the leader of the Saiyans. They were the last eight of their race and he was their prince. He had Frieza to thank for that. Vegeta was not so blind as to know how his planet had come to be ashes and space dust. He was still young by normal standards; he was only three years older than his siblings. At 18, he was the most powerful Saiyan left alive.

And he was in the clutches of Frieza.

Frieza believed he had the Saiyans' loyalty. The elder prince had been on his very first mission as the tyrant destroyed his home planet. Somehow, Vegeta's father sent his youngest children along with the princess' playmate away, crammed uncomfortably in a space pod. The twins and Chichi had only been 3 when they were sent barreling out into space on their own. Whether it was by fate or sheer dumb luck, the single pod crashed into a planet Vegeta was purging along with Nappa and the three brothers. Even as a 5-year-old, Vegeta had the soul of an old man. He immediately understood that he had to look out for his siblings. That's exactly what he did.

Though Frieza did not like it, he saw the benefit in letting the three stowaway Saiyans live. If anything the galaxy's oppressor thought it beneficial that there were three more Saiyans he could add to his force. Plus, they were all so young and impressionable. They could be molded to be whatever he wanted them to be.

The prince would not allow that to happen. Vegeta was very cunning and smart. He had always had a penchant for mischief. He allowed Frieza to believe whatever he wanted to believe about the way the eight-man Saiyan detail worked. If Frieza wanted to believe he had eight loyal mercenaries, Vegeta would allow him to. In reality, Vegeta was simply biding his time. He did not know how long it would take, but until his own heart stopped beating he was going to do everything in his power to make sure Frieza's stopped first.

What Frieza did not realize was that Vegeta did not just command seven other people. He commanded thousands.

_Time. All I need is time_, the young prince thought as his ship pulled away from the planet's gravity.

"Geta, can you turn on the stasis now? I'm sleepy," Tarble's voice came in through his scouter.

Vegeta grunted his response. Usually Tarble could fall sleep by himself. Whenever he asked for stasis, something was usually bothering him. Vegeta pressed the button that controlled his pod's sleeping gas. He made a mental note to have Nappa talk to Tarble about whatever was troubling him. There would be no stasis sleep for Vegeta, though. He had more pressing matters to think about.

* * *

Bulma sat in a marble tub filled with water that was tinted blue from the various healing ointments put inside it. She stared straight ahead, hugging her knees to her chest. A handmaid sat outside the tub beside her. She was stirring a mixture of more ointments and salts. The maid took some into her palm. She looked at Bulma's blank face. Then the girl began rubbing the mixture on Bulma's back. Her back was covered in several bloody lashes from a whip. As the maid rubbed the ointment on Bulma's back, she noticed how Bulma did not even seem to notice.

"Miss, maybe it would be better if you stopped trying to escape. Being hurt like this cannot be good for the mind," the maid said quietly.

Bulma hummed low in her chest. She moved her vibrant lavender hair from her left shoulder to her right shoulder. The maid could see where, for whatever reason, there was a patch of hair missing. It was almost a perfect square. As long as she could remember being with Frieza, Bulma had always been missing her hair from that spot.

"Maybe he'll kill me one day. Maybe if I do something so awful that he can't overlook it, he'll finally just kill me," Bulma said quietly. "Do you think he would, Rika?"

Rika, the maid, sighed as she continued rubbing the ointment into Bulma's wounds. "Lord Frieza would never kill you, miss. Lord Frieza thinks of you as... special," she said.

Bulma let out a dry, scratchy laugh. "Special, huh? I think it's more like he sees me as a tool; a means to an end. I make him money, Rika. I keep him _**SAFE**_. That's all that matters to _**LORD**_ Frieza. He is no lord of mine," she said gruffly.

Rika sighed as she finished treating Bulma's wounds. She watched as the wounds began to close, leaving no traces that they were ever there. She stood and retrieved a bath towel. Bulma stood and allowed herself to be wrapped in it as she stepped out of the bath.

Bulma was a prisoner of the space tyrant Frieza. She had been taken from her home world of Aoi when she was only 5. That was right before Frieza destroyed her planet. Her people had tried to bargain with the evil overlord by giving Bulma over to him in exchange for their loyalty. Frieza agreed and took the little girl from them. Either to show Bulma how powerful he was or just because he felt like it, he destroyed her planet while Bulma watched.

She made a vow that day. As a 5-year-old, she vowed to kill Frieza and avenge her people. She did not know how she would do it. She did not know when she would do it. All she knew was that Frieza would pay with his life.

Bulma was not disgruntled at all by the punishment she had been dealt for trying to escape. She had lost count as to how many times she'd tried to escape during the past 13 years of her life. At 18, she was still determined as ever to get away from the man. She had actually made it to another planet on her second attempt. However, it was planet that was firmly in Frieza's grasp. She'd been turned over faster than she could climb out of the space pod she'd stolen.

She smirked to herself. _That beating had been particularly severe. I wonder what got him so mad about that_, she thought. The planet had appeared to be like a cold planet. She'd later learned that the planet was Frieza's distant relative's home world. It had been the worst possible planet for her to escape to. The people there were just as bloodthirsty as Frieza was.

Bulma had long ago realized that Frieza would never kill her. He would beat her so badly that her vision would run red, but he would never strike her to kill her. She'd come to realize that Frieza needed her. She was extremely valuable to him. Anyone who made Frieza a lot of money was valuable and indispensable. Bulma had a gift that was both troublesome and beneficial. It was a gift that if in the wrong hands could be very dangerous.

It was most definitely in the _**WRONG**_ hands.

"Miss?" Rika's voice interrupted Bulma's thoughts.

"Yes, Rika?"

"Would you like anything else?"

"No. You may go." Bulma slipped into a white nightie and got under her covers. It was not nearly late enough for her to retire, but she wanted to be alone for the rest of the night. She heard Rika turn out the light and leave the room quietly. From then on, Bulma tried to sleep.

* * *

"That girl will be the death of me," Frieza said while rubbing his temples. He was watching his soldiers clear the dead victims of Bulma away. "I treat her with nothing but care and she constantly pulls tricks like this. Perhaps if I just chain her to a wall in the cells of the ship she'll finally become more obedient."

"That is a good idea, Lord Frieza. Maybe a week in anything less than the luxury you give her will smarten her up. Show her what she's being saved from," Zarbon, Frieza's right-hand, suggested.

Frieza shook his head. "Such a thing could break the girl. Her mind is much too precious to be tampered with. Besides, now that these resistance groups have been popping up out of the woodwork, I need her talents in order to flush them out. I think she realizes that she's indispensable and she's grown bolder than ever at that knowledge. Teenagers..." Frieza groaned.

Zarbon took note of how much Frieza sounded like an annoyed parent when it came to Bulma. He knew his master well enough to know that he cared not for the girl herself, but rather for the valued ability she possessed. There was only one other Frieza favored as he did Bulma. As far as Zarbon was concerned, that person was the bane of his existence.

That person was the Saiyan prince, Vegeta.

"By the way, has Vegeta and his ragtag group reported back in, Zarbon?" Frieza asked almost as an afterthought.

_Speak of the devil_, Zarbon thought with a roll of his eyes.

"The last time I spoke with Nappa, he said they were on their way back from their latest mission."

Frieza quirked an eye. "Really? The Jovian System easily had five large planets that needed purging. How is it that they have finished already? It's only been a week. I daresay I'm a little impressed. The people in that area are not exactly lightweights," he said.

Zarbon frowned. He hated whenever Frieza gave the Saiyans any sort of praise. As far as he was concerned, every one of them was scum. He stopped and thought for a moment. _Well, that one female isn't too bad to look at_. He pictured the only female Saiyan he'd seen in recent years. She was loud and bossy as well as possibly insane. She also seemed to have most of the Saiyans under her thumb.

"Let me know when they arrive, Zarbon. Once they do, get this ship moving. I'm going to retire to my chambers for now."

"Yes, my lord."


	2. 2: First Sight

**Destiny**

**Chapter 2: First Sight**

* * *

Eating was Bulma's least favorite thing to do. It was not because she hated food. That was quite the opposite, actually. The reason she despised eating was because she only did it in one of two places: in Frieza's presence or in a mess hall filled with Frieza's ogling men. The mess hall had not bothered her so much when she was a kid, but by the time she was 14 she had the body of a woman. Three years of being ogled like a piece of meat was not her idea of luxury dining. Neither was sitting across from Frieza and listening to his small talk.

The teenager sat across from Frieza, moving her food around her plate. Although her wounds had healed, her body was still very sore. The medicine also tended to make her body feel ten times heavier than it really was.

"I have a surprise for you, Bulma," Frieza said suddenly, bringing Bulma out of her drug-induced trance. She raised her eyes slowly from her plate and looked at him. Confident he had her attention, Frieza spoke again. "We'll be stopping at Axl to pick up some more supplies. I'll let you go down with supervision if you promise to behave."

Bulma raised a lavender eyebrow. "How do you know I just won't bolt on you?" she asked. She watched Frieza chuckle has he picked up his knife and sliced into the bloody piece of flesh on his plate. "What's so... _**AAAHHHH**_!" Bulma yelled as Frieza stabbed her hand with the bloody knife.

"You won't if you value your sanity," Frieza said. He roughly pulled the knife out, causing Bulma to inhale sharply from the pain. She held her hand close to her chest as blood seeped from it. "Come and collect her. Make sure it gets healed thoroughly. I wouldn't want that skin to be scarred."

Rika immediately scurried forward and gathered up Bulma. She was quickly losing consciousness from the sudden drop in blood pressure. The last thing Bulma would remember is seeing Frieza smiling at her while taking another sip of his wine.

Frieza's eyes widened considerably as the glass he was holding shattered between his fingers. The red liquid stained the pink tablecloth. _What the hell was that? I didn't know I was holding the glass so tight_. Shrugging it off, he called for someone to clean the mess as Zarbon walked in.

"What is it, Zarbon?" Frieza asked tiredly.

"The Saiyans have returned, my lord." Zarbon stood stiffly as he watched his master smile.

"Good. Tell Vegeta I want a progress report," Frieza said while cutting back into the red flesh on his plate.

"Yes, my lord."

* * *

Kakarrot was yawning as he stepped out of his pod. "That was a good nap," he said as he looked around. He noticed Chichi getting out of her pod. She looked groggily up at him before rolling her eyes. "What?"

Chichi adjusted her shorts and armor on her body. "I hate coming out of stasis. I always feel so nauseous afterwards. I don't know how you can just shrug it off."

"Stop complaining, Chichi." Turles said as he and Raditz came up behind her. Tarble and Nappa were coming up from behind Kakarrot.

The group hushed when Vegeta came from the other side of the hangar. Kinomi was walking behind him. When they reached the group, Kinomi stayed close to her older brother. She avoided looking around her at the other soldiers and kept her eyes trained on her compatriots.

"Go to your rooms. We'll meet in Kinomi's room later on tonight. I received some useful news on the way here," Vegeta said. Everyone nodded and headed for the exit. Before they got there the door slid open, revealing Zarbon.

"Just the monkey I wanted to see," Zarbon said.

Kinomi clenched her fists together. She stepped past her brother and glared at Zarbon. "You take that back!" she yelled. Chichi pulled her backwards before she could continue advancing on Zarbon.

Zarbon raised an eyebrow. "So there's more than one Saiyan female? Funny how I only thought there was one." He looked at Chichi and then back to Kinomi. "You all look the same anyway."

"State your business, Zarbon," Vegeta cut in, sounding impatient already.

"Lord Frieza demands a progress report. Now." Zarbon turned and left, giving Kinomi one more glance before disappearing back out the door. Vegeta glared at his younger sister once Zarbon was gone. Kinomi folded her arms and looked away from him. Shaking his head, Vegeta went in a different direction from them.

* * *

Bulma hurried down the hallway of the flagship. After her hand had been healed, she was told to get dressed and go to Frieza's "conference" room. There was only one reason she was being called to that particular room. Frieza was about to speak with someone who could possibly be a troublemaker; someone who could possibly betray him or had already done so. He needed Bulma there to affirm his suspicions. Whatever she said affected whether this person would leave the room alive or not.

_I'm like a harbinger of death_, she thought morosely as she turned a corner. She came into contact with something that felt like a steel wall. Her petite body lost the battle and she fell backwards. _What the hell_? Bulma looked up.

The first thing she noticed was the flaming black hair that defied the laws of gravity. The second thing she noticed was the narrow obsidian eyes that glowered down at her as if she was in the wrong for being knocked down. The last thing she noticed was that despite the scowl he was giving her, he was kind of handsome.

"Aren't you going to help me up?" Bulma asked. A snort was her reply. The short man simply stepped over Bulma and continued on his way. Rolling her eyes, Bulma sighed and got to her feet. "Asshole!" she yelled after him.

* * *

Vegeta blinked when he heard the scantily-clad, lavender-haired nymph yell back at him. He whirled, ready to give her a piece of his mind. She was already gone. _Stupid wench. Probably one of Frieza's whores. She better hope she never sees me again_, he thought as he continued in the opposite direction. He had to make a call before he went to see Frieza. He headed to the place where he usually made his calls: Zarbon's quarters.

* * *

Bulma entered Frieza's conference room. She silently made her way over to Frieza and sat on the cushion beside his hovering chair. As usual, she felt like she was on display. Her outfit did not make her any more comfortable. A white tunic that barely reached her mid-thigh and was nearly see-through wasn't exactly something she would wear out of her room.

"Nice to see that you've made it, Bulma." Frieza looked down at her. "Let me see your hand," he said. Bulma raised her hand so that he could see it. The tyrant nodded and she lowered her arm and folded her hands in her lap.

Bulma took the time to see who Frieza would be interrogating today. She had never seen any of the aliens that stood before her. They all appeared somewhat nervous, but that was to be expected. Bulma never really saw anyone besides Frieza, Zarbon, and Rika unless she went to the mess hall on the ship. Even when Frieza docked on planets, rarely was she allowed off of the ship. One thing Bulma also noticed was that Frieza hardly ever interrogated the same soldiers twice. Even when she could sense no pretense in who Frieza interrogated, she never saw them again.

_I suppose he kills them just for making him waste his oh-so-precious time_, Bulma mused with a roll of her eyes. She barely noticed that Frieza had begun speaking. She immediately looked towards the soldier Frieza was addressing.

* * *

Vegeta entered the conference room. He stopped and stood in the shadows of the room. Frieza had already begun to question some other soldiers. Folding his arms, Vegeta simply leaned against the wall and watched the proceedings.

The soldier was attempting to explain some strange activity happening in an area where he was sent to purge over two years ago. Apparently, the job had not been completed. Frieza wanted to know why this was. The soldier explained that he was sure his team had completed their purging and that the system should still be vacant and ready for sale.

Vegeta resisted the urge to smirk. The system Frieza was inquiring about was one he definitely knew a little about. However, Frieza did not need to know that.

Frieza drummed his fingers on the side of his chair. "Well, you sound like you're telling the truth. You should also hope for your sake, and your team's, that you are not lying," he said. He glanced down at the lavender-haired girl beside him. "Bulma?"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. He stepped forward so that he could see around the group of men ahead of him. On the other side of Frieza sat the girl he'd run into earlier. She was staring straight ahead and seemingly through the soldier that had been speaking.

_What's she doing in here_?

* * *

Bulma finally blinked after a solid minute. "He speaks the truth, Lord Frieza," she said calmly. She could tell that Frieza was not pleased in the least to hear that. However, Bulma had never been wrong about anything else so far. She planned to keep her perfect record the same.

"So he does, does he?" Frieza had sincerely been hoping he would get to kill someone. He could still kill the soldiers before him, but it served his purpose better if there was some reason behind it.

_Well, I __**AM**__ bored_, he thought as he raised his hand. Before the soldiers could even react, they had been vaporized.

Bulma did not even flinch at Frieza's split-second massacre. She had seen him do far worse and as far as she was concerned, that particular group had been lucky. Frieza seemed to in a relatively good mood. Usually, he preferred to take his time. After all, killing wasn't fun if it was all over in less than a second.

"Come forward, Vegeta," Frieza said.

Bulma looked up. She had only heard of _Vegeta_. For the entire 13 years she lived under Frieza, she had known that he existed. However, she never saw him before this. He also seemed to be in Frieza's favor quite often like her. And also like her, he seemed to get into just as much trouble. So when _Vegeta_ stepped out of the shadows and made his presence known, Bulma's eyes widened a bit.

_It's the asshole from the hall_. She narrowed her eyes a bit at him. Then something occurred to her. _Why didn't I feel his presence? I should've known he was back there. Come to think of it, that's probably why I ran into him. I couldn't sense him_.

* * *

Vegeta watched the lavender-haired girl glare at him with a mixture of confusion and irritation. From what he just witnessed, he could tell that _**SHE**_ was how Frieza seemingly knew everything. It was not that Frieza was the deity that he claimed to be. It was that he had someone who could easily be mistaken for one under his wing. _This complicates matters_, he thought idly. He took his eyes off of the girl and looked at Frieza. He inclined his head slightly.

Frieza smirked. Vegeta never bowed to him. The most Frieza got was a lackadaisical nod of his head and even then it looked more like Vegeta was simply nodding in response to a question. The evil being decided long ago that he would give Vegeta that simple freedom. "I see you've finished your assignment early. I thought it would've taken a far longer amount of time for you to clear the Jovian System. Dare I say I'm impressed with your efficiency, Vegeta," Frieza said.

_As you should be_ was what Vegeta was thinking of saying in regards to Frieza's backhanded praise. Instead he simply inclined his head again. "The planets and satellites have been cleared of all sentient life. I already sent for a clean-up crew to get the system ready for resale. None of my team was injured during the purge. We are now waiting for your next orders, Frieza," Vegeta said mechanically. Although he was looking at Frieza, he could still feel the girl staring at him. Tiring of her staring, he shot her a hard glance.

Bulma jumped when Vegeta caught her looking at him. She immediately looked down at her hands and away from him. She heard Frieza chuckle and looked up at him.

"Oh! How rude of me!" Frieza motioned down to Bulma. "Vegeta, this is Bulma. Bulma is from Aoi and the last of her kind. Bulma, this is the great Prince of Saiyans, Vegeta. Although Vegeta is not the last of his kind, there's only seven others like him."

Both Bulma and Vegeta gave Frieza scathing glares. The lizard-like being did not seem to notice them. If he did, he simply pretended he did not see them. Bulma looked back at Vegeta. She knew the look he had on his face. It was a look she had seen on herself quite often as she grew up under Frieza. It was the look of pure, unadulterated hatred.

_Frieza destroyed both of our worlds_. Bulma squinted slightly. _This doesn't make any sense. Why can't I even sense his presence? I know he's there but all I'm getting is Frieza and Dodoria's fat ass just outside the door. I've never had this problem before_. She was growing frustrated with this situation.

"Vegeta, Zarbon told me that there is another Saiyan in your midst. He said there was another female. You're not keeping anything from me, are you?" Frieza asked as he examined his nails.

Vegeta crossed his arms and snorted. "No, there isn't. Zarbon simply did not recognize Kinomi," he said.

Frieza appeared interested. "Oh? So the little one has changed in appearance or something?" he asked. "Bring her to me." It was not a request at all.

Vegeta bit his lip. "At this moment?" He watched Frieza nod and wave his hand. Vegeta turned on his heel and left the room, making sure to make as much noise as possible while leaving.

Bulma almost breathed a sigh of relief as Vegeta left. _I'm glad Frieza did not ask me to read anything off of him. Vegeta must be very loyal for Frieza not to question anything he does_. She started to stand.

"And where do you think you're going?" Frieza asked. Bulma sighed and resumed her position beside him. They sat in silence for 10 minutes before Vegeta came back, dragging another person along with him.

Bulma had to blink. They did not resemble each other much aside from their similar eyes and hairstyle. The only difference was that the girl's hair, while it stood up, also fell down around her shoulders. Some of the hair that did not frame her face or stand straight up was pulled into a long braid down her back. It was an odd hairstyle and gave the girl an exotic look. She still had baby fat in her face. She was petite and her build was very athletic. While Vegeta was not tall in any sense of the word, this girl was even shorter. Unlike Vegeta, she did not wear any armor but only the bodysuit that went under it.

_Well, if you call that a bodysuit. Why is she missing one sleeve and one pant leg_? Bulma wondered about the girl's odd outfit. There was indeed no left sleeve and no right pant leg.

"Well, the little one has indeed grown up," Frieza said.

Kinomi wrenched her arm out of her brother's grasp as Frieza called her that ridiculous nickname. She crossed her arms over her chest in attempt to shield her bosom from Frieza's lust-filled eyes. "Why do you want to see me, Lord Frieza?"

Bulma stared at the girl. _I can feel her, but I still can't feel Vegeta. I know I'm not losing it. What is it about him_? She also got another feeling as she tried to block out Kinomi's thoughts. The small girl was not afraid. She was the furthest thing from it. She was angry.

"So like your brother, little one." Frieza paused to think. He looked down at Bulma. "I have a new assignment for you, little one."

The princess raised a dark eyebrow. "Assignment?"

"Yes. You see Bulma here is in need of a bodyguard. I can't be around her all the time. Someone like you could easily watch over her from the nasty ones that roam the cosmos," Frieza said.

Kinomi turned her narrow gaze towards Bulma. "She can't take care of herself? I didn't think you'd keep people around that couldn't handle themselves; much less women. I'm no one's babysitter. I belong out in the field with my comrades," she said, turning her gaze back to Frieza.

Frieza simply chuckled. "Little one, Bulma is far from being able to take care of herself. Just a few days ago, she managed to single-handedly take down thirty-three men. What she lacks in brute strength she more than makes up for with mental strength," he said.

His words caused both Vegeta and Kinomi to examine Bulma again. It was then that they both really _**LOOKED**_ at her. She was small and petite, but not nearly as tiny as Kinomi. She had big, glassy cerulean eyes. Her hair was a curious shade of lavender. What was strange was that her hair seemed to be changing color from the roots; aqua to lavender. The effect was ethereal. Nothing about her said _powerful_, yet by the way she carried herself the two Saiyans could tell she was a tough one. She had to be in order to still be alive under Frieza.

Feeling their piercing gazes on her, Bulma looked up and glared at them. She hated when Frieza made her the center of attention. She got to her feet and looked at Frieza. "I don't like being talked around, Frieza," she said. "I don't need someone to take care of me, either."

Both Vegeta and Kinomi were a little stunned at how freely she addressed the evil being. She also did not seem too afraid of him like others. Only Vegeta had ever ventured into the realm of addressing Frieza as anything other than _Lord Frieza_ or _my lord_.

"Why so angry, child? Besides, you do need a _chaperone_ when we get to Axl. Unless you'd rather Dodoria accompany you down to the planet..." Frieza's voice trailed off. He knew Bulma hated to be anywhere near Dodoria. "Now sit back down."

_Asshole_, Bulma thought as she sat back down with a huff. She turned her gaze away from the Saiyans and stared out the window to her left. She could see a gray, sullen planet coming into view. She knew that to be Axl. As she stared at it, she heard Frieza talking with the Saiyans again. But, she focused on the planet as it drew closer.

Vegeta was barely listening to Kinomi give Frieza all the various reasons why she should be allowed to stay with her kin and not "babysit some porcelain doll." Instead, he was discreetly watching the lavender-haired girl. The frown in her face had relaxed and now her face seemed almost... angelic. He could tell that although she was hardened from her situation, she was still very delicate.

"Little one, it is no longer up for discussion. You will move your things into the spare room in Bulma's quarters. You are to be with her day and night. You will obey her every order. You will fend off anyone who dares to touch her," Frieza said, cutting off Kinomi in mid-sentence. "If anyone so much as lays a hand on her, I will kill them and then I will punish you. Do I make myself clear?"

Kinomi bit the inside of her cheek. It was something Tarble had suggested she do when she felt the need to say something that was less than respectful. Instead of speaking, she nodded and crossed her arms. She looked over in Bulma's direction to see her not even paying attention.

"You are dismissed," Frieza said with a wave of his hand. He watched the tiny teenager stalk off before turning his attention back to Vegeta. "Your next mission will be given to you by Zarbon later on. Until then, you are free to do as you please. The rest of your herd will be given duties around the ship. I will see that Dodoria gives them chores."

Vegeta simply grunted his response. He looked at Bulma once more. Her eyes met his completely for the first time. Something changed in him as he stared into her blue eyes. It was as if a switch had been flipped in his body. It felt almost like he was siphoning some sort of weird power from her. She did not seem affected, but rather intrigued. Before anything could be said, Frieza's voice cut through the air, breaking their connection.

"Bulma, you had better get ready. We'll be docking in Axl within the hour."

In the time it took Bulma to blink, Vegeta was gone. She looked up at Frieza before standing and dusting herself off. Without a word, she retreated back to her chambers where Rika waited for her.

* * *

Vegeta managed to make it back to the Saiyans' quarters before he collapsed onto his bed. He could hear his sister a few rooms down, cursing and throwing things around. His mind was not on that, though. He was thinking about the woman named Bulma. She barely registered when it came to ki. He had never even noticed her before. Now, he could sense exactly where she was. It was as if her ki had always been familiar to him. Shaking off these strange feelings and thoughts, Vegeta sat up and began to think seriously. _Now that I know how Frieza gets his information, it would be best to see exactly what she's worth_, he thought. The prince stood and walked out of his room and towards the whirlwind known as Kinomi.

The young Saiyan princess was throwing one of her trademark tantrums. Besides Vegeta, only Kakarrot was more powerful than she was. However, he would not go near Kinomi when she was angry. The only people who could even attempt to talk her down were Tarble and Chichi. The only one who could put her down was Vegeta.

The elder prince grabbed the princess from behind, pulling her into a full nelson. She struggled for a few moments before relaxing in his grip. "Have you calmed yourself?" Vegeta asked.

"Yes. Let me go now," Kinomi growled. Vegeta released his sister roughly, sending her stumbling forward. Kinomi rounded on him quickly, rubbing her left shoulder. "What do you want, Geta?"

Vegeta chose to ignore both her tone and the ridiculous nickname. "I have a job for you," he said.

"Pfft! Haven't you heard? Frieza's already gotten me a new job." Kinomi stalked past him and continued throwing her assorted bodysuits and armor into a bag. "I've gotta go watch over the pretty little doll. I'm a warrior! Not a babysitter!" With a roar, she tossed one bag to the side and began piling more articles of clothing into the next bag.

Vegeta pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just keep a close eye on the woman. She's important to Frieza," he said.

Kinomi rolled her eyes. "That's what Frieza said, idiot."

"Did it ever occur to you why she's important?" Vegeta asked. Kinomi stopped moving and looked at him. "She has some sort of ability that allows her to see pretense."

Nappa stepped up to Vegeta's side. "She can tell if someone's lying?"

Vegeta nodded. "I think her abilities are more than that. Kinomi, keep the woman safe but try to get information on her powers. If she proves to be a liability, we'll find a way to do away with her." He watched Kinomi gather up her bags.

"Whatever you say, Geta."

* * *

Bulma sat on the couch in her sitting room. She was waiting for Kinomi. If the feisty Saiyan was going to be following her around, Bulma could at least extend the courtesy of attempting to get on her good side. _Saiyans don't seem all that friendly to begin with. Might as well give it a try, though_, the lavender-haired teenager thought.

A brisk knock came at Bulma's door. Rika hurried to open it. The door slid open to reveal a very annoyed-looking Saiyan teenager. Kinomi took a step into the room and looked around. Her dark brown eyes landed on Bulma. "So?"

Bulma blinked and stood up. "Your room is over there." She pointed to the open door to her right. Kinomi looked to her left and snorted. She walked towards the room without a word.

The Saiyan warrior princess was a bit impressed with her new quarters. It was much larger than the small quarters she shared with Chichi. She tossed her bags on the neatly made bed with red sheets. With a nod, she turned around to see Bulma standing behind her. The older girl almost looked shy. "Yeah?" Kinomi asked, trying not to sound annoyed. She was failing horribly.

"I know you don't want to be here. Frieza doesn't ever seem to listen to a word I say." Bulma paused a moment. "Well, that's not entirely true. He listens to what I say if it benefits him. Anyway, I just don't really want us to start off on the wrong foot. I think a formal introduction is in order. I'm Bulma." Bulma held her hand out.

Kinomi looked down at Bulma's outstretched hand. With a small smirk, she shook it. "Kinomi." She watched the older girl smile shyly at her.


	3. 3: Axl

**Destiny**

**Chapter 3: Axl**

* * *

Vegeta was one of the first people off the flagship when it docked on Axl. He immediately turned his scouter off and headed towards the city of Digm. As the only port on Axl, Digm was a very busy city. The streets were always crowded and the businesses were always booming. It was no wonder Frieza used this city as a place to refuel and restock his ships when he was away from Frieza Planet 1.

The prince walked all the way to the inner city where there was the greatest concentration of people. He went inside what appeared to be a tavern of some sort. Inside, it was dark and smoky. It was a crowded place and very loud. Vegeta took a seat at a booth and waited. An alien waitress came over and handed him a drink as well as what looked like an earpiece. Vegeta put the earpiece on and took a sip of his drink.

"Nectar ale. Don't expect any thanks," Vegeta said as he relaxed in his seat. He heard an annoyed sigh in the earpiece.

"_Why would I ever expect common courtesy from you? If I did, I'd be waiting until my dying day and even then I doubt I would receive gratitude from you_," a warped voice said. It was hard to tell if the speaker was male or female.

"Whatever. Do you have anything useful to report to me?" Vegeta asked.

"_I received a few new files from the bases in the Gaian and Helios systems. I'll forward them to you. They were marked as confidential, so I assume they have some helpful information on anything Frieza might be planning. Also, I'm getting word that Frieza is suspicious of the activities in the Jovian System. I'm thinking we should relocate before we draw any more suspicion_," the voice said.

"I've also heard that. I just witnessed Frieza's interrogation of the group who was in charge of purging the system. Relocation would be wise. I suggest going to a planet within Frieza's territory."

"_That wouldn't be very conducive to our plans, would it?_"

"It might sound cliché, but what better place to work against Frieza than right under his nose?"

"_Don't you think that's a bit audacious?_"

Vegeta snorted and took a sip of his ale. "I'm sure it is. That's the thing you must understand about Frieza. He'd never think that someone would have the _audacity_ to defy him within his own borders. Besides, at the rate he's acquiring planets and systems for the PTO, there will be no other place to hide soon," he replied.

"_Allow me to remind you that you are also part of that problem, Vegeta. How do you expect to garner support if you are seen purging these planets without a second thought_?"

"I'm not looking to make friends. I'm looking for people who want what I want," Vegeta said simply. "I have other news, but I'd rather not say it over this line. I'll need to see you in person to relay it. I can't have it being overheard at any cost."

"_Well that sounds good. I'll make arrangements. Where is your next assignment?_"

"I don't know yet. I'll send word once I find out." Vegeta ended the call abruptly. He removed the earpiece and crushed it in his palm. He had to take every precaution when it came to his rebellion.

As he continued to sip his ale, his mind drifted back to the lavender-haired woman. She was definitely a wildcard. If Frieza ever did grow suspicious of him, all he had to do was get Bulma to read him like a book. He did not know how to counteract such a power. _She is definitely problematic. Yet, I can't just kill her, especially not if Kinomi is supposed to be her caretaker. If anything were to happen with the woman she'd be blamed and punished for it_, he thought.

What puzzled Vegeta the most was the feeling he got when their eyes had met. He did not know what she did to him, but after that tingly feeling had passed, he went to beat up on one of his subordinates. Never had he felt stronger. The feeling had worn off, though. He found himself wanting to talk to the woman himself, if only just to see what it was she could do. "Better to leave that to Kinomi. It doesn't seem like the woman would spend that much time in my presence willingly."

* * *

Bulma walked alongside Kinomi as they left Frieza's flagship. She reflexively coughed as she breathed in the air of Axl. After months of breathing in the stale, recycled air on the ship, breathing in unfiltered air was something she had to get used to. It also didn't help that the air in Digm was pretty polluted.

"So, what do you want to do?" Kinomi asked. She crossed her arms and looked back at Bulma. The older girl was looking around in wonder. Rolling her eyes, Kinomi started to walk. Bulma was forced to catch up with her. "Let's go to the marketplace. Did Frieza give you any money to spend?" she asked.

"Of course. But I don't want to spend _my _money yet." Bulma reached into the pocket of the hooded coat she wore. She pulled out a wad of cash with a devious smile. "Being a skilled pickpocket has its advantages. I'm sure Zarbon and Dodoria won't miss this money."

Kinomi smirked at Bulma. "Not bad, Blue," she said.

Bulma raised an eyebrow. "_Blue_?"

"Your eyes. I haven't come across many people with blue eyes before. Red, pink, purple, black, brown... Not many blue-eyed people." Kinomi began walking again. Bulma fell into step beside her. "Don't worry. It's a compliment, Blue."

Bulma nodded as they continued to walk. She assumed that was Kinomi's way of saying she was pretty. The two walked through the crowded streets in silence most of the time. Every now and then, Bulma would stop and look at something in a store or under a tent.

Kinomi stared at Bulma as she looked at some jewelry. _She seems pretty easily amused. I've also seen only one other person haggle better than she does_, she thought with a smirk. Vegeta was the best haggler she knew. She watched Bulma waltz back over to her with a triumphant smile adorning her face.

"This is worth ten thousand credits. I got it down to two thousand." Bulma slipped the blue jewel around her neck. "Isn't it gorgeous?" She held it up to the light.

"Charming," Kinomi said in a tired voice. "Anything else?"

Bulma shrugged. "Well, are you hungry?" She heard Kinomi chuckle. "What?"

"Sure, I'm hungry," Kinomi replied.

"Then let's eat. I'm buying."

Bulma's Saiyan bodyguard raised an eyebrow. "You sure about that?"

"Yeah! Come on!" Bulma grabbed Kinomi's hand and dragged her back into the marketplace.

* * *

Vegeta was making his way back to the flagship when he saw her. She was easy to spot in the crowd. With hair the color of the fabled lavender plant and skin as fair as a pearl, it was hard for Bulma to hide in the crowd. She stood out against the drab colors of the marketplace like a beacon of light. He saw she was dragging Kinomi through the crowd. The little Saiyan princess looked less than pleased but at the same time she seemed amused by the much more fragile being she was being manhandled by.

"Hey Vegeta!" Kakarrot came barreling towards the smaller prince. Vegeta glared at him once and Kakarrot slowed down before he ran into the prince. He was carrying a few black bags. "I got us some supplies."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Like what?"

"Chichi said we needed medical supplies so I got some antiseptics and bandages. She also said she needed some new sheets because she doesn't trust the ones on the ship; something about making her itch. Also some thread to..."

Vegeta tuned Kakarrot out. He looked back out at the crowd at the last place he saw Bulma and Kinomi. He could barely see the top of her head as it disappeared around a corner. He sighed. _Kinomi, remember your orders_.

* * *

Kinomi blinked as her brother's voice registered in her mind. She narrowed her eyes. She was never very good at telepathy. She knew it only worked over short distances, so that meant Vegeta was somewhere where he could see them. _I won't forget, Geta. Just let me handle this in my own way_, she returned.

_Just remember_. Vegeta severed the connection.

Ahead of Kinomi, Bulma stopped walking as they came to a rather crowded restaurant. Biting her lip, she released Kinomi's hand and faced her. "Do you like Bellatrisian food?" All she got as an answer was a shrug. "Well, let's eat. Order me some miesul and you can order whatever you want." Bulma handed Kinomi her credits card.

Kinomi slowly took the card. "You're awfully trusting. You sure you have enough credits on this thing?" she asked.

"I've gotten a weekly allowance of five thousand credits since I was taken by Frieza. I rarely leave that ship. I'm pretty sure I could acquire several of my own planets by now," Bulma said. She turned around and went in search of somewhere to sit.

The Saiyan princess watched her leave for a moment, pondering her words. _Frieza sure has spoiled her. Then again, he gives Vegeta a larger salary than that. But it's bi-monthly, not weekly_, she thought. Shrugging, she headed to the counter to order the food.

Bulma found a table near the back windows of the restaurant. Something concerned her about Kinomi. Although she had not meant to pry, she had heard Kinomi conversing with someone mentally. Bulma would have been able to hear it regardless if she was paying attention, but because she was making contact with Kinomi while the conversation was going on, she heard both ends. It was if the other voice was also talking to her. The other voice she heard was Vegeta's.

"So he's concerned about Kinomi's _mission_. I wonder what this _mission_ is," Bulma mused aloud as she watched Kinomi at the counter. She also noticed some much larger men sitting and looking at Kinomi. The thoughts they were having were less than pleasant. Besides being downright perverted, some of them were very violent. Apparently, Saiyans were not very well-liked. Bulma decided to keep an eye on them. She would rather not be involved in an altercation on her first free day out in years.

"Yo!" Kinomi snapped in Bulma's face. The blue-eyed wonder looked up at her. "Thought I'd lost you for a second there."

Bulma watched as Kinomi sat an enormous tray on the round table she sat at. She recognized the purple noodle-like dish as her miesul. The rest of the food was pretty much the rest of the menu. She briefly wondered how Kinomi carried the tray all by herself, but then she remembered what species Kinomi was. "Why'd you get so much food?"

Kinomi tossed Bulma's credits card back to her and sat down across from her. "Why'd you get so little?" That was all Kinomi said before she began eating.

It was a bit disturbing watching Kinomi eat. She shoveled food into her mouth. After only five minutes, she'd polished off three of the fifteen dishes on the tray. Bulma had barely made it a fourth of the way through her food. After fifteen minutes, Bulma was half done and full while Kinomi was finishing off the fourteenth dish. Bulma noted that for the amount of food she was eating and the pace at which she was eating it, Kinomi was actually getting all the food in her mouth. There was not a misplaced crumb in sight.

"Are you going to finish that?" Kinomi asked as she finished the last plate.

"Um, no." Bulma passed the rest of her food to her bodyguard. The also noted that Kinomi did not think as she ate. Not a single thought passed through her mind except the command of _EAT_. However, Kinomi was also very aware of her surroundings at the same time. They did not receive her full attention, but Bulma could tell she knew when someone was staring at them. It was a strange phenomenon to somehow simultaneously think and _NOT_ think. The blue-eyed beauty would chalk it up to military training for the time being.

Bulma's concentration on Kinomi was broken when she noticed some of the large aliens moving towards them. She stiffened while Kinomi went on ignoring them. Her pace had slowed though. Coherent thoughts began to enter her mind again and Bulma knew she was now concentrating more on her surroundings. She was not tense, but she was prepared to defend herself.

One of the alien men put a large hand down on the table right in front of the plate Kinomi ate from. She did not acknowledge him or flinch. Instead, she reached for the pitcher of red liquid that she'd been using to wash down her meal. She gave Bulma a small glance before continuing to drink.

_I suppose that means I should be ready to take cover if things get ugly_, Bulma thought. She looked at the large man in front of Kinomi. He had pale skin that had a green tint to it. It also looked like he had scales at some points. He only had four fingers and he was extremely tall. Standing, both she and Kinomi would look like children before him. His friends were not much smaller, but they were still rather large and intimidating. _This could get really ugly_.

"You're a Saiyan, aren't you?" the large alien asked.

Kinomi put her pitcher down. "Do I look Saiyan?"

"Yeah, you do."

"Well then I guess I am a Saiyan. What's it to you?"

The large man placed his other hand down, causing everything on the table to jump slightly. Bulma herself jumped, clearly startled by his actions. His thoughts were a jumbled mess. He was very angry and his anxious about something. Bulma looked back at Kinomi, who seemed highly unconcerned with the situation she found herself in.

"You and your kind destroyed my race. We," the man gestured to his friends, "are all that is left. Six of us. That's all that's left of a planet of nearly ten billion."

"Is that so? What planet was this? Was it a blue planet or a red planet? Did it have any suns? Was it destroyed or just... ethnically cleansed? You'll have to be specific. In my line of work, it's very hard to keep track of what planets _my kind_ tends to," Kinomi retorted.

The young Saiyan's harsh words only served to make the man's anger rise. His green-tinted skin was starting to flush with purple. Bulma knew what his next actions would be without even reading him. On the other hand, Kinomi's mind was clear as a bell. She thought of only one thing: _DEFEND_.

And that's exactly what Kinomi did.

The large alien attacked Kinomi. She grabbed his fist while simultaneously standing. With her free hand, she pushed the table down, causing it to flip upwards. Bulma fell back in her chair to avoid getting hit with the table. Kinomi had obviously done it to shield her from whatever was about to come. Bulma looked around from her position behind the table. The restaurant was clearing out pretty fast. The other patrons seemed to be well-versed in bar fight protocol. Bulma's eyes widened when she saw one of the men go flying over the table. She scooted back up underneath it.

_What the hell? How strong is she_?

* * *

Vegeta stopped just as he was about to get on the ship. He could feel Kinomi's power spiking. From the feel of it, she was having fun. _Which means she's gotten into a fight_, he thought with a roll of his eyes. She was stronger than her adversaries but she was merely toying with them. He blinked when he felt something else. _That girl_. She was confused and scared. Against his better judgment, Vegeta turned around and headed to his sister's location.

By the time he got there, the place had been trashed. Sighing, he knew that this would probably come out of his paycheck. Whenever Kinomi got in trouble, it came out of _his_ paycheck. Whenever any of his contingent screwed up and it got back to Frieza, it came out of _Vegeta's_ paycheck. He glanced around to see Kinomi was fighting off two very large Sirians. They were a strong race, but nowhere in the league of a Saiyan. Vegeta hung back for a moment and watched.

* * *

Kinomi was having too much fun. She was purposely drawing out the _fight_. Only the large one who initially confronted her remained conscious. She could feel her brother nearby. Knowing he would chew her out later for her reckless behavior, she grabbed the larger alien by his neck and held him up.

"You've shamed your people enough. I suppose I could send you to them in the afterlife." Kinomi raised her hand to deliver the final blow. Before she could, she heard a small yelp. Turning her head, she saw one of the other Sirians was holding Bulma, his arm wrapped around her neck. She was clawing at his arm and wriggling. Kinomi rolled her eyes. She'd almost forgotten about Bulma.

"Let Argock go," the Sirian tightened his hold on Bulma, "or I'll snap this one's neck."

Kinomi watched Bulma in the unnamed Sirian's arm. She was clawing and scratching like a woman possessed. If the situation was not so serious, Kinomi might have laughed at her.

_Kinomi, the woman's life is not something you should tamper with_, Vegeta sent to her. He could tell she rolled her eyes.

"Let me go!" Bulma yelled, still struggling.

"Hold still!" The Sirian held Bulma much tighter. He was beginning to strangle her.

"Let me go!" Bulma squeezed her eyes shut. Aside from her trachea being crushed, her head was starting to hurt. But she did not stop struggling and fighting. "I said let me _**GO**_!"

Vegeta closed his right eye as his scouter's glass screen cracked and broke into pieces. Every window and piece of glass within a five hundred foot radius of Bulma had shattered when she screamed. Her captor had simply shattered along with the glass. It was as if he was willed apart on a molecular level. Vegeta watched Bulma fall to her knees. When it was over, there was not a single trace of him left. Even his clothing was gone. All that remained was a reddish-brown splatter mark where he once stood.

After getting over her momentary shock-induced paralysis, Kinomi snapped Argock's neck and unceremoniously dropped him on the ground. She walked hurriedly over to where Bulma was trying to catch her breath. She felt something warm running out of her nose. She touched her face and looked at her fingers. She had a nosebleed. She immediately put pressure on it. "Are you ok?" she asked Bulma.

The lavender-haired doll looked up at her. She too had a nosebleed. "I'm exhausted." Bulma looked around her as she stood up. "What happened? Did you save me?"

_Lie to her_, Vegeta told Kinomi.

"Yeah. I vaporized him. Let's go before Frieza sends someone out." Kinomi pulled Bulma to her feet. "Pinch the bridge of your nose to stop the bleeding."

Bulma obeyed as Kinomi led her back to the ship. Her head was killing her. She felt as though she was losing consciousness. _I can't pass out. If Frieza sees me hurt he'll blame Kinomi and who knows what he'll do to her_, she thought. Bulma tried her hardest to concentrate on something other than the pain.

* * *

Zarbon stood just outside the entrance to the flagship. They were not leaving for another ten or so hours. However, Frieza advised him to keep an eye out for Bulma. Even though Frieza had left Kinomi in charge of the teenage rebel, he still did not trust Bulma being out and about. By his scouter, Zarbon could tell Kinomi had gotten into something of a fight. It had not lasted long, but he was mildly concerned for Bulma's wellbeing. Even if it was blatantly Kinomi's fault, Zarbon would get caught in the gravitational pull of Frieza's wrath.

It was easy to spot Bulma in a crowd and when he saw her arriving with Kinomi he sighed with relief. He noted the redness of her face and how she looked a bit dizzy. Kinomi gave him a derisive glare and passed right by him, pulling Bulma along. She was stuck her tongue out at him and took Bulma inside.

The green-haired alien would rather die than admit it, but he found the youngest Saiyan female quite attractive. He knew plenty of men on the ship who appreciated her looks as well. Besides their fear of Vegeta, they feared their leader even more. Frieza had once said that the Saiyan princess was a rare commodity and that she was not to be touched... sexually. _I could always suggest certain punishments for the little brat should she ever cross a line_, Zarbon though evilly. He was about to follow them inside when Vegeta registered on his scouter. He whirled around to see the spiky-haired prince behind him.

"Where did you come from? And where have you been? You're never supposed to go off grid," Zarbon said.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "I didn't go anywhere. Your scouter did just pick me up, didn't it?" The prince sauntered past Zarbon, ignoring the low hiss he gave. Vegeta had only made his presence known because he did not like the way Zarbon was eyeing his sister and Bulma. He could only imagine the foul thoughts going through his mind.

* * *

Kinomi deposited Bulma roughly on her bed. Bulma had passed out halfway to their quarters and Kinomi ended up carrying her. Rika ran to her mistress' side. She looked up at Kinomi for answers. "She said something about a headache." The Saiyan watched Rika nod slowly and look back down at Bulma. "Her body temperature seems to be high. Maybe you should work on bringing it down." Kinomi left the room.

She took a seat in the living area of Bulma's quarters. Closing her eyes, she searched for her brother. He was back on the ship and within reach. _Her maid seems to know something. Should I ask her something_?

_No. The maid could be under Frieza's thumb and feeding him information. Bring it up to the woman when you are certain you two are alone_, Vegeta replied.

_What if she's also feeding Frieza information_?

Vegeta sighed mentally. Somehow, he knew Bulma would never help Frieza outside of what he expected of her. Maybe if Kinomi earned her trust they could utilize her skills against Frieza. _I don't think she is. Just ask the woman what the extents of her powers are. Nothing more, nothing less. Got it_?

Kinomi sighed. She was extremely curious about Bulma's abilities. As far as she knew, Bulma could read minds and discern whether a person was lying or not. _Yeah I got it. But what if she gets on to me_?

_Gain her trust and that won't be a problem_. Vegeta severed the connection.

The Saiyan princess hated when Vegeta just ended their conversations. She looked back towards Bulma's bedroom and saw Rika placing a towel on Bulma's head. It was strange that Bulma did not remember how she got free. Kinomi briefly thought about telling her, but if even Bulma had no control over such a power it was better that she not know about it. If Frieza got wind of it, he would most definitely abuse that power.

* * *

"Food's ready!" Chichi called from the kitchen of the Saiyan quarters.

It took less than five seconds for the bumbling brothers to scramble into the room. They sat at the only table afforded to them. Chichi had made enough food to feed an entire battalion of Frieza's soldiers. Six Saiyan men could easily put away more than that if they were so inclined. Raditz, Kakarrot, and Turles began filling their plates quickly as Nappa sauntered in. The oldest of the Saiyans was relatively calm as he sat down.

"I got it first, Kakarrot. It's mine!" Turles yelled at his twin.

Though he was easily the more mild of the twins, when it came to food he was the fiercest. "No way, Turles! I got to it first!"

"I'm older, so I get it!"

"By three lousy minutes! That card won't fly today!"

Raditz calmly reached between the two and took the slab of meat for himself. "Now, neither of you get it," he said as he bit into it. The twins glared at him, steam practically rising from their ears.

The chef walked between Turles and Kakarrot and pinched their ears. They flinched and tried to wriggle free as she pulled them out of their seats. "I told you what would happen if you fought over food. Out my kitchen!" She nearly tossed them through the door.

Vegeta walked past the fallen brothers and into the kitchen. He was not a fan of Chichi. At the most, he tolerated her because she was Kinomi's friend, she could do first aid, and she could cook. Her personality left something to be desired. Also, her voice was too high for his sensitive ears.

"Good evening, Vegeta. I assume everything went well," Chichi said, looking him dead in the eye as he sat. Despite the aforementioned shortcomings, she was also the only person Vegeta trusted with information on his rebellion. As much as she annoyed him, Chichi was the only other person besides himself and Tarble in the Saiyan contingent that wasn't mostly brawn.

"Well enough." Vegeta looked around. "Where is Tarble?"

"He was working on the scouters the last I saw him. You know how immersed he gets in his work. He said something about the tracking devices."

"The boy needs to eat. Missing meals does nothing for his strength. He needs that if he is to keep up with us," Nappa said through a mouthful of food. "Why is he tinkering with the tracking devices anyway?"

Vegeta sighed as he filled his plate. "Because we're being tracked every time we wear one. Frieza gives us free will, but he'll always be able to track us."

"Then we just break them," Raditz replied. "Why keep it if it only relays to Frieza our location and our conversations?"

"Because it would be painfully obvious that we're off grid. Everyone knows Frieza has his goons watch us like hawks whenever he can't do it personally," Chichi said. She looked towards the door at the twins. "You can come back in and eat if you act civil," she relented. Kakarrot and Turles came in and sat down without a sound. There was some minor shoving, but Chichi's hard glare put an end to that.

Tarble walked in the room, holding up a scouter. "I did it!" he exclaimed.

"Did what?"

"I managed to rewire the scouters so that the tracking devices still work, but we can set the device to give out a signal of wherever we want to be." Tarble's smile dropped when he noticed everyone sort of staring blankly at him. "Say if I were back in the Jovian system, I could set this to say that I'm on Axl even though I'm not."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Well done. That actually may come in handy soon," he said. He saw Tarble smile again and gave him a hard glare. "You've finished your work for the day. Eat."

Tarble immediately sat. After he fixed his first plate, he looked at Vegeta. "Will Kinomi be all right?"

"Why wouldn't she be?" Vegeta did not look up from his food. He knew his younger brother grew anxious whenever he was not around her for too long. Kinomi would deny it until her dying day, but she experienced the same anxiety. Vegeta figured it had something to do with sharing the same womb for nine months. Sometimes Vegeta thought they were two halves of the same androgynous being; Kinomi the brawn and Tarble the brains. "Aside from getting into a bar fight, nothing is wrong with Kinomi. She has a mission."

"Speaking of missions, did Frieza ever say what our next mission was?"

* * *

Frieza tapped a skinny finger on his chair. In his other hand, he held a burgundy glass of red wine. The wine was the color of blood. Frieza brought it up to his lips just as Zarbon walked in the room. "She is back?" he asked just before taking a sip of his drink.

"Yes, Lord Frieza. Would you like an audience with her?" Zarbon watched Frieza carefully. His master seemed to be in a good mood. That was a good thing. "I can have her retrieved."

"Yes. I'd like to see how my delicate flower's day was. Also, I want to see how she's meshing that little cute monkey," Frieza said.

Zarbon nodded and left the room. He was surprised at how Frieza referred to Kinomi. Whenever he said something or someone was _cute_ it usually did not turn out well for whatever was _cute_. He could only assume that he wanted to keep Kinomi close for some other reason.

* * *

Bulma opened her eyes. The light in her bedroom seemed a little too bright. The world was hazy and bleary. It felt like someone was hitting her constantly in her left temple. The worst part was she could not stop the flow of thoughts like rushing water through her mind. It was as if she could hear every thought everyone on the ship was having at that exact moment. There were so many voices overlapping with each other. This only happened when she lost control. Bulma groaned and closed her eyes.

"Miss Bulma? Miss Bulma?"

Someone was calling to Bulma. She opened her eyes again. She'd finally beaten the voices to the back of her mind. Rika was standing over Bulma, dabbing something cold on her forehead. Bulma groaned and turned her head to the side.

"Miss Bulma, are you okay? Are you hurt?"

Bulma shook her head. She sat up. "I'm fine. Where's Kinomi?" she asked.

Rika breathed a sigh of relief. If anything happened to Bulma, Frieza would most definitely kill her for it. "She's in the living room, miss. Should I call for her?"

Before Bulma could answer, someone's thoughts pushed their way to the forefront of her mind. _Zarbon is coming_. She immediately got out of her bed and looked herself over. Everything seemed to be in place. Just as she was leaving the bedroom, Kinomi was answering the door to her chambers.

Kinomi's face said enough when the door slid open, revealing the beautiful face of Zarbon. While many women found him absolutely delectable, Kinomi found him repulsive. She found most men repulsive. It was most certainly a byproduct of growing up around six other men. "What do you want?" she asked, her tone short.

"I don't think I like that attitude of yours, brat," Zarbon said. He pushed his way past Kinomi. She was two seconds away from yanking his ponytail right off his head when a voice halted her. She looked towards the bedroom and saw Bulma standing in the doorway. She could not tell if Bulma had spoken or not. It sounded as though she spoke but at the same time it did not. Kinomi bit her tongue and just watched.

Bulma sighed and crossed her arms. "I'll repeat Kinomi's question since you seem to have misheard her. What do you want?" She tried to sound blasé about the situation, but the harsh ache in her head was preventing any emotion except the pain from showing on her face.

That pain did not go unnoticed by Zarbon. "Frieza would like your company." He reached out to grab Bulma's arm. Before he could touch her, Kinomi slapped his arm away. She instead grabbed Bulma and began pulling her towards the exit. "You little brat..." His insult died in his throat when he saw Kinomi smirking back at him with her middle finger in the air.

The Saiyan princess looked at Bulma out of the corner of her eye as they walked in silence. She let out a low sigh. "You'll have to put on a better acting job than that in front of Frieza, Blue," she whispered.

Bulma looked up at the new nickname. She chuckled softly. "I'm trying. This pain is unreal though. What happened back at the restaurant? Why does it seem like a big chunk of my memory is missing?"

Kinomi knew there was only one way to get Bulma's trust. She had to tell her the truth. She grabbed Bulma arm and yanked her into a custodial closet. She'd clearly taken Bulma by surprise. "Listen and listen good. I'm only going to tell you this once."

"Tell me what?" Bulma asked. She could no longer see Kinomi in the dark closet, but she knew the girl was staring intently at her.

"Tell you what happened back at the restaurant."


	4. 4: Discovery

**Destiny**

**Chapter 4: Discovery**

* * *

Bulma and Kinomi entered Frieza's room. The two expected to see Zarbon. Instead, there was a purple-skinned alien waiting for them. He was only a little bit taller than Bulma and he was grinning at them. Kinomi recognized him immediately. _Cui_, she thought angrily.

_Who's Cui? Is he a bad person_? Bulma asked Kinomi. She could tell Kinomi was not ready for Bulma to speak to her just yet by the way the shorter girl flinched. _Sorry. I haven't gotten this under control so I can still hear pretty much everyone's thoughts_.

Kinomi nodded slightly. She had learned that Bulma had to actively block out the thoughts of others. To her, it was just like overhearing people talk. Unless she constantly held up a mental wall to block out the thoughts, she would hear every thought of everyone within a certain radius of her for every waking moment. Kinomi assumed something like that was mentally exhausting, but Bulma said she'd gotten used to it; that it came almost second nature.

"Bulma, my little flower. How was your trip to Digm?" Frieza asked, resting his chin on his hands.

"Smelly, hot, loud... A lot like the ship, actually. I definitely wasn't missing anything," Bulma said. "Is that all you wanted to know?"

Frieza shook his head. He noticed the blue jewel around Bulma's pale neck. "I see you've bought yourself something. Let me have a look." He beckoned Bulma forward with his right index finger. Bulma walked over to him as she removed the necklace. She placed it in Frieza's outstretched hand. The warlord examined the blue gem. "A sapphire in the shape of a teardrop. I never knew you liked jewelry, Bulma."

Bulma shrugged and stepped away from Frieza. "This is the first piece of jewelry I've ever owned. It was an impulse buy," she said.

"How is your new bodyguard? Is the cute little one playing nice?"

The lavender-haired girl wondered where Frieza was going with this conversation. He was beating around the bush. If she so chose, she could just read Frieza. However, he seemed to have built up a defense from her powers over the years. Frieza simply did not think past what he was going to say at the moment while he was in Bulma's presence. He was savvy enough to know her powers would even extend to him. _Why is he concerned with Kinomi? She hasn't done anything_. She concentrated on Frieza just to see if she could read him. She tried to hide her surprise when she realized she could. It hurt to do it, but his thoughts were coming in loud and clear.

"She's been very helpful. She protected me while I was out. You chose well, Frieza," Bulma said. Although it was a fight Kinomi instigated somewhat, she had the decency not to include Bulma in it.

"And what about you, little one? Are you enjoying your tenure so far?"

Kinomi rolled her eyes. "I've been on this _tenure_ for less than a day. There isn't much to like or dislike yet. Is there anything you _need_, Lord Frieza?" She was not trying to hide her annoyance with the whole situation.

Frieza smirked at Kinomi and took a sip of his wine. "Little one, Cui here was just telling me that he hasn't seen you in a few years. Isn't that right, Cui?"

"Yes. Her runt brother keeps her hidden. I see him all the time. Rarely do I see the Saiyan women, though." Cui looked Kinomi over. "And a woman she has indeed become."

Bulma did not like where this conversation is going. She also was not too keen on where Cui's line of thinking was going. She immediately looked back at Frieza. "Frieza, I'm very tired from today. Can Kinomi take me back to my room?"

The tyrant looked at Bulma. "I'm not stopping you from leaving. I'm still talking with Kinomi, though."

"But I need a chaperone. Kinomi noted herself that with so many men back from missions that it isn't safe for me to be alone on the ship. I'd like her to escort me back. She _**IS**_ my bodyguard," Bulma said.

Frieza's entertained appearance drained away. He could just refuse her, but Bulma could be stubborn until she got her way. And, she was not lying. He'd seen the way soldiers looked at Bulma. Lust was not hard to discern even without reading their minds. _I'm beginning to indulge this girl too much_, he thought with a frown. He grumbled something under his breath and waved his hand. Bulma turned around and nodded at Kinomi. The two left almost as quickly as they had come.

Cui seemed disappointed. He looked at Frieza. "She is as cute as you say, Lord Frieza. I'm surprised. Do you think the Force will like her?" he asked.

"I'm sure they will. Their leader has always had a thing for _tails_," Frieza said. "Zarbon, tell Dodoria to send for Vegeta. I've got an assignment for him."

* * *

The duo made it back to Bulma's quarters. They'd walked the whole way in silence. Kinomi could practically smell the anxiety emanating from Bulma. Deciding it was better to ask where there were not prying eyes and ears, she waited patiently until they made it back. The moment the door slid shut and locked, Kinomi sat down and crossed her arms.

After checking to see that Rika was nowhere within reach, Bulma faced Kinomi. Her question went unsaid, but Bulma could tell what she wanted to know without even trying. "Frieza has something awful planned for you. He wants to sell you or something."

The Saiyan princess appeared indifferent to such a plot. "I assume you mean as a sex slave. That would all be a ruse."

"A ruse?"

"I'd be expected to perform such _duties_ but in reality I'd be a spy for Frieza. He even spies on his so-called _allies_. He's smart enough to know not to trust anyone. For some reason he trusts you, though." Kinomi chuckled softly. "Wait until Geta hears about this."

Bulma sat down next to Kinomi. "Won't he be mad? I'd be furious at such a plan if you were my younger sister." She watched Kinomi shrug. "What does that mean?"

"He'd be annoyed at the prospect of having to sink to such a low, but that would only last as long as the time I'd leave. While I've never had to use my feminine wiles to lure men before, I figured it was only a matter of time before I would be used like that." Kinomi took the time to look at Bulma for her reaction. She laughed at the telepath's face.

"I see nothing funny about this," Bulma said.

"Well, I do. You look worse than that guppy-faced Cui."

Bulma crossed her arms. "Clearly your idea of humor differs greatly from mine. You have absolutely no problem with being sent out to do Frieza's bidding as a sex slave?"

Again, Kinomi shrugged. "Ninety percent of Frieza's spies are sex slaves. Ninety-five percent of them are female. Dignitaries and men in positions of power seem to all agree on one thing: sex. What better place to plant a spy than in someone's bed? Concubines are privy to conversations even the most trusted assistants are not."

"I suppose I see your point. That doesn't mean I condone such a thing. I also can't believe your brother would even stand for something like that," Bulma said. She looked at Kinomi out of the corner of her eye. Her expression had not changed, but she had gone into deep thought.

"I understand Geta and why he does what he does and thinks the way he thinks." Kinomi could not come right out and tell Bulma about the resistance. She tried to keep even the thought of it out of her mind, not knowing if Bulma was listening in or not. "If you were in our position, you'd understand."

She did not know what that cryptic last sentence meant, so Bulma decided to change the direction of the conversation. "I _willed_ a man into nonexistence, huh? That's definitely new."

"You didn't know you could do that?"

Bulma shook her head and rubbed the bald spot on her head. For the most part, the pain in her head had ceased and she regained control over her powers. But for whatever reason, that one spot on her head was still hurting. "I honestly didn't know. I've never tried to control anything other than the flow of thoughts into my mind."

Kinomi glanced around the room. She got up and retrieved a glass paperweight from Bulma's writing desk. She sat it on the small table in front of the couch they sat on. "There."

"What?"

"Try to _will it into nonexistence_. Try to move it or something."

Bulma looked at the purple paperweight. It had been a present from Frieza. He had said it reminded him of her hair. Frowning, Bulma began concentrating on it. The spherical object just sat there, unmoving. Bulma leaned forward, narrowing her eyes to the point that she was almost squinting. The paperweight did not move. No matter how much Bulma tried, the glass ball would not move. She sat back on the couch letting out a sigh.

Kinomi smirked. "No dice, huh? Amazing that you can do it subconsciously but can't call upon it at will."

"The only explanation is that I do it inadvertently or under duress. I can't even recall doing anything to start it. All I know is that I was scared and my head started hurting. The next thing I know, you're pulling me to my feet and I have a nosebleed." Bulma looked back at the glass ball. She frowned at it. "It's like it's mocking me."

"I highly doubt a glass sphere is mocking you, Blue." Kinomi relaxed back on the couch and stretched. "I'm hungry. I think I'll go find something to eat in a few minutes. Where is that lackey of yours?"

Bulma had gone back to staring at the glass sphere. She still could not even get it to even shudder. _I know I can do this. I've done it before, so I can do it again. It can't just be a one-time deal_, she thought angrily. She began squinting again.

The door to the room slid open unexpectedly. Bulma jumped from the sudden noise. Kinomi was also mildly startled. The glass paperweight shattered on the table. Bulma and Kinomi exchanged bewildered glances and looked up to see Rika coming in. She was followed by servants with several carts of food.

"I hope I got enough food for an appetite such as yours, Kinomi." Rika faced them. She noticed the destroyed ball on the table. "Oh Miss Bulma, did you drop it? Lord Frieza won't be happy about this. I'll clean it up immediately." She left the room.

Kinomi relaxed again, giving Bulma a knowing smile. "Now if you could just figure out how to do that at will, your life will be a lot easier..."

* * *

Vegeta scratched at his left temple. For some reason, he felt an odd burning sensation. It had only lasted a moment. It felt like a tiny prickle at first and then a burst of pain. Then it was gone. As one who rarely experienced any ailment aside from an injury sustained in the line of duty, Vegeta found it strange that his head would even tingle. Chichi always said that headaches were omens for trouble brewing.

The displaced prince was on his way back to the Saiyan quarters. He'd just come from a meeting with Frieza. _Not really a meeting. More like Frieza just telling me what to do and where to do it_, Vegeta thought with an irritated roll of his eyes.

He walked in on a scene of Kakarrot and Turles arguing over a shoe of all things. Strong as they were, neither had very much going on upstairs. They were reliable in battle but outside of that the two were almost useless. "Get up, idiots!" Vegeta said loudly.

The twins looked up to see their leader. Turles took the opportunity to kick Kakarrot and take the shoe. They both stood and faced the prince. "What's up, Vegeta?" They did not do it often, but when they spoke in unison it was kind of creepy.

"Frieza has given us orders. We're to leave for the Jovian System tomorrow."

Kakarrot scratched his head. "But hasn't that system been purged already? Why is Frieza sending us back?"

"Apparently the job was not done thoroughly. Frieza wants the entire system inspected and rid of all forms of sentient life. Where's the raven?" Vegeta asked. He looked around for Chichi, not finding her anywhere in their quarters. "Well?"

"She went with Nappa to the training rooms. They took Tarble with them," Turles answered.

"And where is the third idiot in your family?"

"Raditz? Oh he made off with some female a while ago. Haven't seen him since."

Vegeta sighed. He figured Raditz would eventually find his way back to their shared quarters. In the meantime, he would go see what it was Chichi, Nappa, and Tarble were doing. He left the shoving brothers and headed to the lower decks of the ship. There were several training rooms with reinforced walls and gravity manipulators in them. The Saiyans kept to themselves for the most part and everyone else was either too scared or had some grudge against them. They were mostly left alone whenever they trained.

Chichi was going at it with Tarble. Besides Vegeta, she was the only one Tarble would willingly train with. Vegeta got the feeling Tarble trained with him because he was simply his older brother. Even though they were the same age, Tarble saw Chichi as an older sister. She was patient with him; too patient for Vegeta's liking.

"Tarble, stop pulling punches! No one is going to pull punches on you!" Chichi sent him flying into a wall, knocking the wind out of him.

_Well, patient as it gets for her. At least she doesn't coddle him_, Vegeta thought as he strolled up beside Nappa. He continued to watch the spar in silence.

"Look for openings! Don't just blindly attack!" Nappa yelled.

"Pfft! _Blindly attacking_ is your specialty, Nappa." The elder prince made his presence known. Everyone paused to see Vegeta. Tarble's face relaxed. He seemed happy to know that his training session might be over. "Nappa, head back to the quarters. We're leaving for the Jovian System soon. Tarble, go with him," Vegeta said.

Once Nappa and Tarble had cleared out, Chichi crossed her arms and walked up to Vegeta. "But hasn't that system already been purged? Why are we going back?" The question she wanted to ask was probably clear as day to Vegeta. However, they were never truly alone. There were always eyes and ears listening.

"Clearly the first purge was nowhere near good enough to meet Frieza's lofty standards. I'm sure there's nothing left there except some stragglers that might've been hiding out during the initial purge."

Chichi nodded slowly. "And we'll be leaving Kinomi here alone?"

"She has her own assignment. Until she is relieved of that post, she'll be that woman's bodyguard." Vegeta did not like the thought leaving Kinomi alone with Bulma, but it was out of his control. "How is Tarble's progress?"

"Slow, but steady. He's definitely gotten faster. His general strength isn't that impressive. He could best any of the third-classes, but second-class would be hit or miss. First-class is definitely out of the question. His greatest strength is his ability to improvise. Combine that with his speed..."

"Speed? How fast is he?"

"It's strange that his speed is so great. While he may not be able to land a decent punch at times, he can certainly dodge with the best of them."

Vegeta grunted. "I see. Work on developing his speed and attacks based around it."

* * *

Bulma woke up earlier than usual the next morning. It was the first time in years that she'd woken up from another's thoughts. She sat up, trying to block them out. She paused when she realized whose voice it was. Kinomi was apparently having another conversation with her brother. From her tone, Bulma could tell she was unhappy with whatever he had told her. Since they were not touching, Bulma could only hear one side.

_It isn't right for me to pry_. Bulma immediately blocked the thoughts out. _What I should be more concerned about is how I have this new ability that I didn't have when I woke up yesterday_. She hot up and turned the lights on in her bedroom.

Kinomi's eyes cut to the side. She could hear noise coming from Bulma's bedroom. She sighed. _See! You've made me wake up Blue_! she yelled at her elder brother.

_Wake her up? You haven't even said anything_.

_She can __**HEAR**__ anyone's thoughts. I'm sure she can hear our conversation. Normally she's able to block out everything unless she wants to hear it but her control has slipped since yesterday's outburst_, Kinomi replied. _I still don't think I belong here_.

_You do until Frieza says otherwise_.

The thought of telling Vegeta what Bulma told her about Frieza's intentions crossed her mind. She knew Vegeta would not take it well at this stage. She also knew that though he could do little to nothing to stop it; it would distract him from his duties. _This job is stupid. Clearly this girl can take care of herself_.

_You just said that she couldn't replicate that power without some sort of catalyst. How is that able to help her defensively_?

_Self-preservation usually comes before anything else_.

_Listen. We'll be back soon. Just do your job_. Again, Vegeta severed the connection before Kinomi could respond.

She rolled her eyes and threw herself back on her bed. She would admit that the accommodations in Bulma's chambers were much better than where she stayed with her Saiyan allies. She had her own room; her own space. She no longer had to sleep on a bunk bed. The only problem in her eyes was the food. While it was of a higher grade than the usual crap that was served in the mess hall, it still paled in comparison to Chichi's cooking.

"How to go about keeping Frieza's minions at bay," Kinomi whispered. "I guess I could start by helping Blue figure out a way to use that power of hers." She rolled out of her bed and went to the door.

Bulma looked up as Kinomi exited her room. "Good morning. I just ordered breakfast. I think we've left Axl already. Did you sleep well?"

"As well as can be expected."

The lavender-haired telepath nodded. She noticed Kinomi's hair was unbraided. When it was not in the braid, it matched the rest of her hair; spiky and wild. Bulma found herself wondering if it was soft or brittle. Kinomi caught her staring and Bulma immediately looked away. "I wonder where Rika is. She's usually here in the mornings."

Kinomi snorted at the maid's name. Though the maid seemed faithful enough to Bulma, Kinomi had a feeling that she was Bulma's maid for a reason. "Do you trust that girl, Blue?"

"Rika? What a strange question, Kinomi. I'd have to trust her on some level. She does take care of me when I'm sick or injured. Plus, she's always been there to patch me up whenever Frieza punishes me. Why do you ask?"

"Has it ever crossed your mind that she may be feeding information to Frieza?"

Bulma blinked a few times. Then she smiled and laughed lightly. "Oh I have no doubt that she is. I'm pretty sure she gives Frieza full progress reports on me."

"And that doesn't bother you?"

"Should it?" Bulma asked with a shrug. She could see Kinomi was not pleased in the lackadaisical attitude Bulma had towards Rika essentially being a spy. "Listen, I'm careful enough to sensor myself around Rika. She doesn't know about my..." Bulma stopped talking.

Kinomi frowned at Bulma's clipped sentence. Before she could say anything more, Rika entered the room. The young maid looked between the two before walking between them. "You have ordered breakfast, Miss Bulma?" she asked.

"Yes. I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleep. I ordered enough for Kinomi. She has that big appetite."

"My body requires fuel just as yours does. The only difference is mine requires a bit more."

_Quite a bit more_, Bulma thought with a smile. _I think this friendship thing is going swimmingly. Maybe I can get her to talk about her brother later_.

* * *

The Jovian System consisted of four large, gaseous planets. The largest could be considered something of a failed star, as it had no actual surface. It was green with lines of white clouds. It was uninhabitable, so there was no way any sentient life could survive on it. The other three were much smaller and might as well have been moons to the largest of them. The Saiyans split up into three groups; two groups of three and Vegeta. Vegeta went to Jovu-4, the smallest of the planets, alone.

The three brothers landed on Jovu-2, the second largest. Because the air was toxic, they were forced to wear gas masks. Kakarrot was the first to voice his displeasure. "I hate wearing these things. They're uncomfortable," he whined.

"You could always take it off. I doubt you wouldn't be doing the galaxy a favor," Turles scoffed at him. Kakarrot growled and tackled his brother. They began a playful wrestling match that continued until they heard their elder brother growling into his mask. "What's wrong, Raditz?"

Raditz faced his less-mature brothers. "Could you two act less like ignoramuses and more like soldiers? Why do I always get stuck with you two ingrates? We have a job to do. Root out any leftover natives and kill them."

Kakarrot and Turles obeyed their older brother. The three took off in different directions, hoping to weed out any survivors from the earlier purge. As they flew over the planet, they picked up no readings of sentient beings. There were barely any buildings standing on the planet. From the looks of things, the place had been thoroughly purged.

"No one's here, guys. Frieza sent us on a bogus mission," Turles said into his scouter. "Just like that idiot to send us out into the middle of nowhere for no reason."

"You know he can hear you, right?" Kakarrot quipped.

"And? There's no law against insulting him. He's said so himself. As long as I follow his damn orders he doesn't care what the hell I say about him."

_To some extent, that is true_, Chichi thought as she eavesdropped on the brothers. She was on Jovu-3. While the atmosphere on Jovu-3 was less toxic, it was still hazardous to breathe it in unassisted for a lengthy period of time. She, Nappa, and Tarble all wore gas masks as well. Chichi tuned the brothers out and checked the area for life.

"I'm not picking anyone up, Chichi," Tarble said in her ear.

"Me neither. Still, we have to at least give the planet a thorough once-over. Nappa?"

"Hn?"

"Take the north and east. I'll take west. Tarble, you go south. We'll meet back here in no less than an hour," Chichi said. The other two grumbled their responses and the group separated.

Vegeta landed on Jovu-4 after everyone had already been on their planets for at least 30 minutes. In its current position in orbit, it was the farthest out from Jovu-1. The air was close to the usual air they breathed, except that for whatever reason it was much thinner. He could go without a mask, but if he was to expend more energy than simply flying he would find it hard to catch his breath quickly. He also opted for breathing assistance with a mask.

The prince chose to come to Jovu-4 alone for one reason. It was where one of the bases of his rebellion was. Vegeta landed relatively close to it. The base itself was deep underground. The only evidence of its existence was what appeared to be a well. Vegeta went over to it and jumped down. He fell for a good 50 feet before landing in the dusty underground room. A trapdoor and a panel with several buttons was on the ground. After entering a code, the trapdoor opened slightly. Vegeta used his foot to lift it completely and then jumped down.

The underground base was dark and clearly deserted. Vegeta made his way around it by memory. He came to a large office-like room and went inside. There on a table, seemingly waiting for him was a small tube-like object. Vegeta picked it up and felt around it. He found a button, pushed it, and sat the tube back down. A hologram of a hooded being appeared.

"_The heads-up was greatly appreciated. You'll find the files you're looking for in the voice-activated chamber. Keep them safe. There will be more on the way. The new location will also be included_." The message ended and the hologram disappeared. In a small explosion, the tube self-destructed.

Vegeta left the room and headed back down a hall. He came to a stairway and descended four flights. He was easily almost a mile underground by now. The last floor held very little light and Vegeta had to use the light on his scouter to see. He came to a stone wall and felt around. His gloved fingers came across hard, metal surface. Vegeta stepped in front of it.

"Activate," he said.

"_Activated. Password required_."

"Nova Bella Arcturus," Vegeta said clearly.

"_Password accepted_." The safe popped open. Vegeta pulled it open completely, retrieved a small envelope, and closed it once more. After collecting what he came for, he left the compound altogether.

Outside, he rose high above the well and prepared a large attack. In a single attack, Vegeta destroyed both the well and the underground base. All that was left was a crater with seemingly no bottom. After that, the prince returned to his pod and left the planet.

* * *

"I don't think you're trying, Blue."

Bulma looked at Kinomi from over the top of the glass. For the past eight days, she had been trying to use her newfound power at will. The results were not forthcoming. "I am trying, Kinomi. I'm trying so hard my eyes hurt. You try making objects come apart with just your brain. I promise it'll give you a headache," she retorted.

Kinomi sighed and sat up properly in her seat. She leaned forward, still across from Bulma. "Maybe that's the problem. Maybe it isn't something you should be attempting to do with your mind," she suggested.

"What? I don't get where you're going with this. Of course it's a mental thing."

"You think it's mental and that's the problem. How do you read minds? Is it something you actively try to do or is it something you naturally do?"

Bulma considered the question for a moment. The truth was the only thing she _actively_ did was keep the voices out. In order to read a person's mind, all she needed to do was search for their _channel_ and essentially turn up the volume. "So what you're saying is that I should just let it happen?"

Kinomi nodded and relaxed back in her seat. "Exactly. Just let nature take over. There's a door you need to unlock. All you need is the key."

The lavender-haired beauty went back to staring blankly at the glass. She lessened the tension in her face and exhaled. With a slight shift of her head, the glass shattered. This time, the glass did not fall to the table in pieces. The shards stayed afloat, circling as if they were in orbit. Kinomi watched with cloaked interest as Bulma tilted her head again. The next thing to _shatter_ was the table the glass had been on. After that, a few more pieces of furniture began to come apart.

Kinomi immediately recognized where this was going. "Blue, bring it back together," she said as calmly as possible. Objects in the room just kept coming apart. Kinomi noticed the lone porthole window crack. If the glass shattered, they would both die. "Blue!"

Bulma blinked. She became aware of her surroundings. _I'm doing this? This is bad. How do I stop it_? She racked her brain for answers. Things were still shattering around the room. Bulma squeezed her eyes shut. The pain on the left side of her head returned as she tried to draw all the power she was giving off back in.

The Saiyan warrior sniffed as she felt something warm running out of her nose. Bringing a gloved hand up, she realized her nose was bleeding. Everything began to piece itself back together and the tension on Bulma's face grew. Soon, everything was back to the way it was. The slight fear Kinomi had just a moment before dissipated when she saw Bulma collapse back on the sofa she sat on.

"That was... intense," Bulma whispered. She too had a nosebleed. She wiped the blood away and looked at her hand. "I wonder if this is going to happen every time."

Kinomi tuned Bulma out as she wondered aloud about her new abilities. She retreated into her own thoughts about how truly dangerous Bulma could be. _She could be both an ally and nemesis at the same time. No; with that power she already is. If Frieza ever found out about her power, she could easily become a weapon of destruction; an even greater one than Geta_. She looked at Bulma, who was smiling and still talking.

"Hey Kinomi?"

Kinomi snapped out of her stupor. "Huh?"

"Could I meet the rest of your... family?"


	5. 5: What The Hell?

**Destiny**

**Chapter 5: What The Hell?**

* * *

Vegeta was jolted awake, but he did not open his eyes. He was still sitting in his pod. For whatever reason, he'd come out of his stasis sleep. There was silence in his scouter. That meant that everyone else was still in stasis. Why was he the only one awake? What had drawn him from his sleep? He finally opened his eyes and blinked the blurriness out of them. Once his eyes focused, he blinked a few more times just to make sure what he was seeing was indeed real.

_What the hell?_

In front of Vegeta was an ethereal being. It was clearly a woman. She had blue hair and pale skin. Her eyes were cloudy, as if they were missing both irises and pupils together. She simply sat in front of Vegeta with her knees to her chest in the cramped pod. She was staring at him unflinchingly and intently. Her mouth was open slightly, as if she was about to speak to him or holding her breath.

Vegeta came back to his senses and reached out to grab the mysterious woman. She gasped almost as if he had touched her but his hand went right through her. She looked down at his hand. To Vegeta's surprise, she appeared just as bewildered by this phenomenon as he did. She continued to stare at his hand and reached for it. Vegeta did not draw back. Instead, he chose to watch what she would do. Her hand hovered above his and he could almost feel her warm touch. Just before she could touch him, she glanced up in his eyes. For a split second, Vegeta saw a flash of cerulean in her eyes. If he had blinked right then he would have missed it. Then, her image disappeared like smoke in the wind.

_What the hell just happened_? Vegeta questioned himself. He rubbed his eyes with his gloved hands and checked to see where they were in their journey to Frieza Planet 1. They were in the Romulus System. _There should be a deserted planet somewhere around here. I need to blow off some steam_...

* * *

When Bulma opened her eyes, she felt like there was a 500lb weight on her head. She blinked a few times and realized the world seemed upside down. She was hanging off her bed. There were a few broken objects in her room, but nothing too bad. She righted herself on the bed and sat up in it. Bulma stretched and moved her head around. She was very stiff. _How did I end up hanging off the bed like that? That was strange_, she thought. Then she tried to recall her dream. All she got was blurry images.

Rika burst into her room and turned the light on. Bulma shielded her eyes a bit and glared at her maid. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but Frieza has called for you immediately. Apparently there is an emergency."

"Emergency?" Bulma got out of bed, yawning. She was still incredibly tired. "It's way too early for Frieza to even be awake."

"I believe someone was captured and brought aboard the ship. Frieza wants to question them immediately."

Bulma's eyes narrowed as she put on a simple tunic. She took a single glance at herself in the mirror. She noticed that the small bald spot on the left side of her head was red with irritation. She touched it and immediately felt the pain. She did not dwell too long on it when she noticed something about her hair. The roots were blue. Bulma clawed through her hair to see that it was the same all over. Only Kinomi's voice brought her out of her stupor.

"Blue, let's go. I don't want to hear Frieza's mouth. Besides, the longer you wait the more irritated he'll be and the more likely someone will die a slow, painful death," she said. As usual, she sounded less than pleased with the situation. Bulma nodded numbly and tore herself away from the mirror.

Frieza was actually standing when Bulma and Kinomi arrived. Kinomi was yawning again and Bulma was rubbing her eyes. Frieza immediately beckoned them over. The moment Bulma got in front of him he grabbed her by the arm. Bulma was taken by surprise and almost fell into him. "We have some _revolutionaries_ in our midst, Bulma." He turned her around to face the prisoners.

They were odd creatures. They looked more like animals. One had a snout and the other was small and had a tail. The smaller one looked like it wanted to cry. It was literally shaking with the unshed tears gleaming in its eyes. Bulma could practically feel the fear. "Revolutionaries? They look like pets to me," she said.

"Pets? They seem to not want to talk to me. Maybe you can get something out of them." Frieza released her while pushing her forward.

Bulma walked towards the imprisoned creatures. From their thoughts, she could gather that they were indeed terrified. She took a deep breath and let their thoughts in. After a moment of tense silence, Bulma pointed to the one with the snout. "His name is Oolong. He's from Earth. This one is called Puar and he's also from Earth. They're both shape-shifters and they run a delivery service," she said quietly.

The overlord hummed low in his throat. "Delivery service? So they carry packages around?"

"That seems to be the gist of what they do. They are not revolutionaries. They only send the packages. Look at them. They're hardly these rebels that you speak of, Frieza. They just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time," Bulma responded. She faced Frieza and crossed her arms.

Frieza was not pleased with Bulma's words. She had no reason to lie to him and and the one time she did, the consequences were so bad that she had not done it since. He looked past her and down at the prisoners. "If you have nothing to hide, then you won't mind us taking a look at your cargo, would you?" he asked. The two shook their heads fervently. Frieza motioned for a Dodoria to leave. The two captives moved to follow but Frieza's voice halted them. "You two stay here. This shouldn't take long. Then you may be on your merry way. Bulma, you may leave."

Bulma felt sorry for Puar and Oolong. They really were not part of any rebel force. They had been simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. She silently hoped there was nothing incriminating on their ship. Then she mentally chuckled. _Frieza would kill them simply for wasting his oh-so-precious time. He's looking for a reason to shed blood today_, she mused.

When she reached her quarters, Bulma went directly back to her bedroom. When she opened the door, she paused. Kinomi noticed her hesitation and came up behind Bulma, ready to defend her at a moment's notice. The Saiyan princess relaxed when she noticed what Bulma was staring at: a dress.

"It arrived after you left to go see Lord Frieza." Rika walked up behind the two. The courier just said it was a gift. It bore Lord Frieza's insignia so I assume it is genuine," she said.

Kinomi rolled her eyes and walked up to the bed. She picked up the dress and examined it. "Not exactly _modest_ attire," she mumbled.

Bulma rolled her eyes and sauntered over to Kinomi. She took the dress from her guardian and looked it over. "Frieza seems to like me personifying _look but don't touch_. He just likes to flaunt me in front of his allies and men. He does it mainly to see who will get out of line," she said. She saw the strange look Kinomi was giving her. "He needs something to kill every now and then. He doesn't need a reason to do it, but he likes giving his men the impression that there is a reason for his ultimately unnecessary bloodshed."

"And I thought Saiyan bloodlust was bad..."

Bulma smiled at Kinomi as she continued to look over the blue dress. The color alone was a sharp departure from what Frieza usually sent her to wear. Her wardrobe consisted mostly of white and black clothing. The dress was made of some sort of silk material. It had two long slits up the front that would go over either leg. It was sleeveless and Bulma could only imagine how tight it would fit across her chest. _What will it take for Frieza to notice I'm not flat-chested_?

* * *

Dodoria presented a large box to Frieza. The overlord waved for him to open it. The pink lackey did so and Frieza's eyes widened slightly when he saw what was inside. He looked to the two prisoners. "Where were you taking these?" he asked.

"Um, Sato-sei, Lord Frieza," Oolong said.

_Sato-sei? That planet's practically dead. It's nothing but a penal colony now. Why is someone sending for this kind of merchandise_? Frieza stared at the loot for a few more seconds. He waved his hand again and Dodoria stepped back.

"What should we do with the prisoners, Lord Frieza?" Dodoria asked as he closed the box. Once again, Frieza simply waved his hand. Dodoria nodded towards a few soldiers and the captives were ushered out the room and to their ultimate dooms.

* * *

Kakarrot, Turles, Raditz, Nappa, Tarble, and Chichi sat on a rock formation on a deserted planet. It was a hot and dry planet with mostly desert covering the surface. Due to being close to a relatively dim star, the light was lacking. While the group sat on rocks and talking amongst themselves, their leader was not too far off. The elder prince was in a meditative state, trying to harness his power and clear his mind.

"I wonder what's got Vegeta so riled up," Turles said. "It's not like him to just stop in the middle of a trip without a reason."

"You're right on that one. How is it that he came out of stasis to begin with? Must've been one hell of a dream in order to just snap out of it like that," Raditz concurred.

"Geta doesn't dream in stasis. In fact, Geta says he never dreams," Tarble piped.

Chichi shook her head. "Everyone dreams, Tarble. Though he may never admit it, he does dream. I wonder what he would dream about though..."

"If you were Geta, what would you dream about?" Tarble inquired. The answer was simple enough, though no one said it. If they were Vegeta, the only thing they would dream about every time they closed their eyes to sleep was revenge.

Vegeta's meditation was not going well. He was feeling restless and like he was a volcano ready to burst. His power was fluctuating violently. It was almost as if he needed some sort of release. Seeing how he could not just destroy planets that Frieza kept records of, he needed to find a different form of release. He stood up abruptly, barely noticing how the sand rose with him. "Kakarrot!"

Kakarrot was immediately alert. He got up and flew over to Vegeta. Just as he landed a few meters behind Vegeta, the prince attacked. Kakarrot was quick enough to block and jump back. Clearly the prince wanted to spar. If that was what he wanted, Kakarrot would most definitely oblige.

Turles sighed and reclined on the rocks. "We could be here a while."

The two Saiyans traded blows for a long while, neither getting the edge over the other. Vegeta realized that it was because they were both subconsciously pulling their punches. He finally let a punch fly that was uninhibited. Kakarrot was plainly not ready for it and took it square in his face. The group was immediately alert when they saw Kakarrot skidding across the dunes toward the rock formation the sat on. They all jumped out of the way as Kakarrot cleared a path.

Vegeta stayed in his position and crossed his arms. He still felt off. He released a fair amount of energy into that punch and still he felt like he was going to explode. Scoffing, he turned away at the sight of Chichi helping Kakarrot out of the hole he was in. The prince's thoughts were still on that strange being he'd seen while in his pod. Facing away from his companions, Vegeta began to raise his power.

Tarble's scouter beeped. He turned from watching Kakarrot climb out of the rocks to looking at his brother. As Vegeta's level rose, a blue aura began to surround him. He began glow like a blue flame. Tarble gasped when his brother's power shot past the power level he was recorded as having. _What the hell_?

* * *

Kinomi stopped her kata when she felt a familiar energy. She looked around the training room. Bulma was slumped against the wall, sleeping soundly. Kinomi started to approach the sleeping girl. She noticed there was a faint glow around Bulma. It was blue. _The same color as Geta's aura. It's his energy I feel. But how_? Kinomi kneeled down in front of Bulma and reached out to shake her awake. Before she could touch her, the aura surrounding Bulma flared gold momentarily. Kinomi fell back.

* * *

"What the hell was that?" Nappa whispered. He had just seen Vegeta's aura flare gold. It was getting harder to even withstand the pressure the prince's power-up was putting on him. The sand was swirling and stinging them in the face.

"He needs to stop!" Tarble yelled over the sound of the howling wind. "Nappa, he needs to stop! Vegeta can't handle this much energy right now!"

Nappa realized the severity of the situation immediately. The problem was that no one could possibly get close to the prince at the moment. He doubted Vegeta even knew what he was doing consciously. Over the wind he could hear the elder prince's voice as his power just kept going higher and higher. _He's got to stop_...

"Vegeta!" Kakarrot called to the prince. He tried to get close, bloody nose and all. Every time he tried, Vegeta's aura would just knock him back. "Damnit!"

Vegeta felt something was wrong. Having this much power seemed unnatural to him. It was the same feeling he felt after he trained back on Frieza's ship. He knew he should stop the power up, but he could not rein the power back in. It began to feel as if he was burning on the inside. Vegeta could see the gold light flashing among his aura. _What the fuck is this? Why can't I stop? What's going on_? Panic began to set in. If he did not stop, he would literally explode.

"Kakarrot, do something!" Chichi yelled.

"I can't get close enough! His aura is too strong!"

Tarble blinked as something caught his eye. Walking up behind his older brother was a wraithlike figure. It looked like a ghost. Tarble began to run forward, braving the harsh stinging of Vegeta's aura. Raditz grabbed him before he got too far. "Let me go!" he yelled, but Raditz held him back.

Vegeta gasped as he felt a cool sensation envelope him. His skin stopped burning. He looked down and saw arms wrap about him. He'd seen those arms before. He could feel his energy dropping. It felt like the world was growing dark as his aura started to dissipate. He could almost feel breath on his ear. Something was being said in his ear.

* * *

"Breathe," Bulma whispered right before her eyes opened. She stretched and looked around. She saw Kinomi looking down at her. "I can't believe I dozed off. Are you done for the day already?"

Kinomi stared at Bulma blankly for a moment. She could no longer feel her brother's energy emanating from the other girl. Bulma did not seem to realize what had happened either. Deciding to withhold that information, Kinomi nodded her head. She extended her hand and helped Bulma up. "Do you know how to defend yourself, Blue?"

Bulma giggled. "Aside from willing someone into nonexistence, not really. I've never had to defend myself. If you haven't noticed, I'm pretty sheltered."

"You have tried to escape before. You had to run into some trouble along the way."

"All I had to do for that was steal a weapon. I'm a pretty good pickpocket," Bulma said with a smile.

Kinomi smirked, almost impressed. "Anyhow, I am going to show you how to throw at least a proper punch. Something like that could go a long way." She held up her hands. "Give me your best shot."

Bulma stared at Kinomi's hands. She balled her right fist up and threw a punch right into Kinomi's left hand. She immediately winced. It felt like she had punched a steel wall. Bulma recoiled and looked at her aching knuckles. "What are you made of?"

"Flesh and bone just like you. I'm not that solid. I'm told that I'm still carrying baby fat." Kinomi lowered her hands. She took Bulma's fist and put her fingers in a proper position. "If you punch with your thumb inside your fist, you'll definitely break your thumb. You want to keep that fist tight. Try not to tense up so much. You want this to be a fluid, natural motion. Try again." Kinomi stepped back and put her hands back up.

Once Bulma took another swing, her hand still hurt, but she felt a little bit better about how she made contact. "How was that?"

The Saiyan sighed. "Pitifully weak. It's like your strengths are all in your mind. However, your technique can still be worked on. Come here..."

* * *

Vegeta's body was stiff. They were flying back to Frieza Planet 1 already. The prince was somewhat restless. From what he was told, his power had reached something far beyond what he should be capable of; what he was ready to handle. He'd also broken Kakarrot's nose. Chichi had managed to set it but she was definitely not pleased. Vegeta could not remember clearly how he came down from that power surge. All he could remember was a cool sensation and a soft voice telling him to _breathe_. Once he exhaled, his power faded and with it his consciousness.

The prince noticed a light blinking. It was a link to Nappa's pod. Vegeta sighed and pressed a button. "What is it, Nappa? Shouldn't you be asleep?"

"What happened back there, Vegeta?"

It was not often Nappa got straight to the point. _The bastard must be concerned about my wellbeing. He's getting too soft_, Vegeta thought. He crossed his arms and went silent in search of an answer to give Nappa. The problem was that he had no answer. That was not something the proud prince was willingly ready to admit.

"Vegeta?"

"I powered up. That's all I can say." The prince briefly considered telling Nappa about the specter. He immediately thought better of it. Nappa would only start worrying and enter _bodyguard_ mode. "When we get to Planet One, we will begin serious training again."

"Yes, sir. What about Kinomi? Will she be back on the base?"

Vegeta winced at the thought of his younger sister. He'd almost forgot that she was still on Frieza's flagship. He knew the true reason Frieza gave his sister that new assignment was not because he truly thought Bulma needed a bodyguard. He wanted to keep the Saiyans under his thumb. He wanted to especially keep Vegeta where he could control the prince. "If Frieza docks at Planet One, then we'll see her. Other than that, we will be separated as long as she is taking care of that woman," he replied.

The answer was not one Nappa was satisfied with and Vegeta knew it. However, Nappa did not say anything else on the matter. Vegeta could hear him drift off to sleep. Vegeta stayed awake for a few more minutes, pondering his next move. He needed to get in contact with his informant. Arrangements needed to be made.

* * *

Bulma hated Planet 1. It was Frieza's main base of operations. He'd fashioned himself a castle of sorts on the planet. Bulma could tell that at one point the place had been a cultural phenomenon. Frieza came through and bulldozed the entire planet to suit his needs. That included the mass genocide of the original inhabitants.

The telepath, her bodyguard, and her maid exited the flagship with the mass of people also exiting. Instead of going to the barracks where the vast majority of everyone stayed, Bulma and her crew headed for the palace. Kinomi had been mildly surprised when she found out that Bulma stayed in the palace. Frieza understood enough about his men to know that in order to keep the peace, the Saiyans required their own space. So, they were given what could be termed as a "guest house" to the main palace. The Saiyans had their own home and servants. Kinomi thought she had it pretty good until she saw Bulma's accommodations.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Bulma said as she pushed open the large doors that led to her quarters. Kinomi stepped in first, surveying the place for intruders. Then she took the time to look around. Bulma had what was essentially an apartment. Walking through the door had been like walking into a house. "I could give you a tour if you want. Your things from the ship were brought to your room already."

Kinomi whistled. "You don't know how lucky you are, Blue. Frieza treats you as if you were his own flesh."

Bulma stared at Kinomi for a moment. "Like his own flesh, you say?" Before she could say anything else, Rika tugged on her arm. "Kinomi, apparently I have an appointment with one of Frieza's doctors."

"A doctor's appointment?" Kinomi raised an eyebrow. She did not trust the sound of that in the least. "Is this something you normally do?"

"It's fine. Frieza usually wants me to have a physical whenever I arrive back from a long excursion in space. This will take an hour at the most. Make yourself comfortable. I'll be right back." Bulma was guided out the room by Rika.

Kinomi was not convinced. _If I could bet any money on it, I'd say these appointments are what's keeping that bald spot on her head_.

* * *

The doctor was an old alien with what looked like gills on the side of his head. When Bulma walked in the exam room, she saw him preparing by putting on a pair of gloves. She moved quietly over to the exam table and sat down on it. She'd never seen the doctor wear gloves before so she was immediately apprehensive about what this appointment included.

"Dress down please," the doctor said without looking at Bulma.

Bulma jumped as the door shut behind her. "Dress down? Why?"

Orcus, the doctor, faced Bulma. "Lord Frieza has asked me to check on a few things. Dress down and lay back on the table. You may cover yourself with a blanket, but I need your knees spread and up." Orcus spoke as if none of these things was out of the ordinary.

The telepath was having none of that. "And just what is between my knees that _**LORD**_ Frieza is so concerned about? There is nothing there that he needs to know about," Bulma spat. She crossed her arms, determined not give in to Frieza's silly request.

"I thought you might say something like that," Orcus said blandly. It took Bulma only a moment to smell the gas that was leaking into the sealed room. She took a step back to attempt to leave the room, but her consciousness began to slip. She could see Orcus approaching her. Bulma tried to sidestep him. The moment her foot hit the ground, she blacked out completely.

* * *

The first thing Vegeta felt when he stepped out of his pod was the headache. The headaches were coming more frequently and each time they were more painful. They never lasted too long, but they were just very annoying. The pain had not reached a completely agonizing point where Vegeta could not function. They were just a nagging inconvenience. The headaches also did nothing to improve his mood.

_Time to find Kinomi_, Vegeta thought as he walked off away from his pack. They barely noticed the prince leave as they discussed dinner plans for the evening.

* * *

Seeing Bulma return to her quarters unconscious was a bit unnerving for Kinomi. The shady attendants did not make her feel any better about it, either. She watched them deposit Bulma in her bedroom then left as soon as they came, not saying if anything was wrong. Kinomi looked immediately to Rika. "Well?"

Rika was a bit startled by Kinomi's sudden inquiry. "She was just at the doctor. She should wake up within the hour. This is quite normal. Bulma never returns conscious," she replied plainly.

"And why not? She only goes there for what amounts to a physical, right?" Kinomi asked. Rika just looked at her blankly and did not answer. The maiden left the quarters without another word. The Saiyan princess narrowed her eyes and took another look at Bulma. Then she turned and followed Rika out of the quarters.

* * *

"You say she's compatible?" Frieza asked as he looked over the reports from Bulma's appointment to Orcus.

"Yes, my lord. They are a match," Orcus responded timidly. Reporting to Frieza about Bulma's health always made him nervous. He'd been the girl's doctor since she was a child and no matter how many times he gave Frieza his report, he still felt as though one possible hair out of place could send Frieza into a rage and kill him.

However, Frieza seemed happy today. "That is most excellent news," he said as he handed the reports back the doctor. "Good work, Orcus. Make sure she stays in good health. If she so much as sneezes I want her medicated immediately."

"Yes, my lord." Orcus hurried and rushed out of the room. Frieza's moods could change on a whim. Just as he was leaving, Kinomi was barging in.

Frieza seemed mildly surprised to see the young princess. She never came to see him on her own, so it really was a genuine shocker when she just appeared. "And what can I do for you, little one?"

Kinomi held her tongue at the annoying moniker and took a deep breath before speaking. She hated asking permission for anything, but if she wanted to stay in good favor with Frieza she had to at least let him know where she was taking her charge. "I want to dine with my kin tonight. "

The overlord crossed his arms and walked toward Kinomi. "You have a peculiar way of always weaving around asking for anything. Instead, you state your intentions and hope for some sort of acquiescence." He stopped in front of her. He looked her over for a moment. "You are still carrying a decent bit of weight from your youth. I guess Saiyan women don't mature as fast as the men do. You may dine with the rest of that filth you call _kin_. Just don't leave Bulma alone."

"I didn't plan to." Kinomi smirked and left the room without so much as a simple thanks.

As she was making her way back to Bulma's wing of the fortress, she was pulled to the side. Kinomi got ready to fight but her attack was stopped when she realized who held her. She faced her older brother completely. Vegeta seemed a bit tired but none the worse for wear. He gave her a quick nod and walked away. Kinomi started going in the opposite direction. She waited patiently for her brother to speak to her.

_How is your job going_? Vegeta asked.

_About as well as can be expected. Blue is really something special. By the way, I'm bringing her over for dinner at the house_, Kinomi replied.

Vegeta was a bit shocked by this. _And Frieza is allowing this_?

_Yes_. _I think it's a good idea. Besides, she expressed some interest in getting to know the rest of you. Seems like she's never really had someone to talk to. There's also a lot more to her powers than mind-reading; a whole lot more_, Kinomi said.

_That doesn't surprise me. Just make sure she won't try anything crazy._

_ I think you'll like her, Geta. She's a lot like you_...

* * *

Bulma pulled herself out of unconsciousness. She was back in her room and currently wondering how she got there. Gasping, she immediately sat up as the memories came flooding back to her. Bulma got out of her bed and pulled her tunic off. She threw it to the ground and looked in the vanity mirror. From what she could see, there were no incisions or marks on her body that she was unaware of. She turned and tried to see her back. Just as she turned, the door to her bedroom opened and Kinomi stepped in.

"Nice rack, Blue," she said with a smirk. Bulma reflexively tried to shield her body as Kinomi took a seat on her bed. "A bit late for that, Blue. You've got a pair. I don't know why you don't show them off more."

"Because they're only for me to see." Bulma picked up her tunic and slipped it back on. "I would've thought you were going to eat by now."

Kinomi shrugged. "I'm eating at my place tonight."

Bulma looked at Kinomi. "Your place? In your room?"

"Nope." Kinomi stood up. "We're going to where I really live. You're going to eat with my brethren." She grabbed Bulma's hand and pulled her out the door, ignoring Bulma's cries about how she wasn't properly dressed.

* * *

At the Saiyan house, Vegeta was in a small hidden room. He sat down in front of a desk with communication equipment sitting on top. He turned a radio on and switched through the channels until he came to the proper one. He made sure the line was secure and picked up the mic. "Blue to Yellow," he said.

After a moment, a small noise was heard. "_Yellow here._"

"I received your intel."

"_That's all well and good. However, I was recently informed that a courier carrying some important contraband was stopped by Frieza's men. Frieza is probably now in possession of said illegal goods_."

"What was it?"

"_Weapon parts, ammunition, medical supplies... That sort of thing. As far as we know, the delivery boys were apprehended as well_."

Vegeta hummed low in his throat. "That means they are probably already dead. Courier services don't usually hire those who are battle ready. They might still be in the bowels of Frieza's ship."

"_Do you think it is possible that you can retrieve what was lost_?"

"No. You'll have to make do without it for now. I can attempt to procure more of the same once I find out what it was Frieza confiscated. That's not all I have to discuss, though."

"_Oh? What else is there_?"

"Kinomi's charge. The woman Frieza keeps around for her powers. Her abilities stretch beyond simply reading minds. Kinomi will give me the full story later."

"_Very well. Signing off_."

Vegeta turned the radio and microphone off. He stood up and left the room just as he heard a commotion from the front of the house. It sounded like Kinomi had arrived by the way Raditz was squealing in pain. Vegeta walked towards the front of the house and leaned against the wall while watching the circus that unfolded before him.

Kinomi had Raditz in a headlock. Given her height or lack thereof, Raditz was on his knees. The position they were in looked incredibly awkward for Raditz and by the way he was squirming to get out of it, it seemed uncomfortable as well. Kakarrot and Tarble stood around, laughing at Raditz's misfortune.

"What is all this noise?" Chichi said loudly as she entered from behind Vegeta. She pretended not to see everyone wince at her shrill yell. "Kinomi, you've been back for less than five minutes and already you're causing trouble." She placed her hands on her hips as she looked at Kinomi and Raditz.

The Saiyan princess stared at Chichi blandly for a moment. She calmly released Raditz. "Whatever, Chichi. I brought a guest," Kinomi said. She stepped to the side. Bulma peeked inside the house from behind Kinomi. Rolling her eyes, Kinomi pulled Bulma inside. "This is Bulma."

Bulma stood up straight and straightened her dress on her. "Hi," she said with a wave. The Saiyans stared at the ivory-skinned woman. Bulma felt incredibly small under their gaze. They all held a much more commanding presence than she did.

Surprisingly, it was Raditz who said something first. "You work for Frieza? I had no idea he employed women as anything other than whores. Well, besides Chichi and Kinomi." He stepped up closer to her. "You don't smell like men so I guess he has some other use for... _**OW**_!" Raditz cowered as Chichi hit him in the back of his head.

"What Raditz means to say is that you're very pretty. Welcome to our home. My name is Chichi. Come on inside." Chichi took Bulma's hand and began to lead her.

Bulma walked behind Chichi in silence, taking in everything that was around her. Then she noticed Vegeta as they entered a hallway. The prince was not looking up at her. Bulma stared him down for a moment. Just as she passed him, he looked up at her. Their eyes met briefly, startling both of them. The moment passed quickly. Bulma inhaled sharply. She felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. She had no idea that Vegeta was feeling the same way.

_What the hell was that?_


	6. 6: The Rain

**Destiny**

**Chapter 6: The Rain**

* * *

Dinner with the Saiyan contingent was eventful for Bulma. While she thought Kinomi had the strangest appetite, she quickly realized that Kinomi's vast appetite paled in comparison to the bottomless pits of the men. Bulma noticed that the twins named Kakarrot and Turles easily put away the most food. There seemed to be a constant war between the two over what food was theirs. Then there was their older brother Raditz who would separate them callously when the bickering got too rowdy.

As Bulma continued to eat, she also watched Kinomi interact with her twin brother and the one called Chichi. She did not know that Kinomi had a twin. She thought Vegeta was her only sibling. Tarble was almost identical to Vegeta but his features were much softer and less hardened. The teenager seemed almost meek in comparison. Bulma knew he was probably 100 times stronger than her, but he was clearly the weakest among them. He had been watching Bulma like a hawk, something that had immediately begun to annoy Kinomi.

"No matter how hard you stare, she isn't going to burst into flames, Tarble. Quit it. Staring is rude," Kinomi said while smacking him in the back of the head.

"Kinomi!" Tarble pushed his sister. He went back to looking at his food before glancing up at Bulma. Bulma caught his eye and smiled at him. He did not smile back. "You look familiar. I feel like I've seen you before," he said, his voice serious.

Bulma was a bit taken back by the implication. "Well I don't know how you could have seen me before. I'm not allowed out very often. Frieza never lets me go too far."

Kinomi snickered. "Bulma, you're too modest. She's actually tried to escape from Frieza on multiple occasions. The most recent was about a month ago. She took out thirty men," she said.

"Thirty-three," Bulma said quietly just as she continued eating. "It doesn't matter. I've only managed to get to another planet once. My escape was short-lived, as I had landed on a relative of Frieza's home planet. Frieza was strangely hysterical about that particular instance. My punishment had been rather harsh that time too. He must not like that relative."

Everyone except Kinomi seemed a bit startled by Bulma's words. Chichi was the only one who spoke on it. "Frieza punishes you?" Bulma nodded. "What does he do?"

"I have a relatively weak body compared to Frieza's soldiers so there's only so much he can do before killing me. His punishments vary from lashes to being hosed down with hot water." Bulma looked up thoughtfully. "It's happened so much I barely feel the pain anymore."

There was a rather awkward silence before the group went back to talking amongst themselves and eating. Bulma just sat and listened to their playful and sometimes lewd banter. Whenever it got too vulgar, Chichi would immediately correct them on it. Bulma found it curious how they treated her in a maternal way even if Chichi could not have been any older than Bulma herself.

Bulma stole a few glances at the quietest person at the table: Vegeta. He seemed engrossed in his food and rarely looked up from his plate. She noticed that unlike his siblings, he wore a perpetual frown. It seemed to be inked into his features; as if there was no other way for him to look. Bulma was pretty sure he had somehow managed to tune everything around him out. She vaguely wondered what he was thinking about. It would be a complete breach of her moral code to read his thoughts without his consent (or approval from Frieza) but she could not help but be intrigued by him. Looking down at her food, she tried to find his string of thoughts.

_What's wrong_? Bulma noticed that she could not find anything on Vegeta. Even if she was just looking for his mental signature and not his thoughts exclusively, she could not find him. There was nothing there for her to read. _It wasn't a fluke. I really can't read him at all. How is this even possible? I can read everyone. It's like he doesn't even exist_, she thought. She must have appeared frustrated when Chichi shook her arm. Bulma jumped and looked over at her.

"Are you feeling okay? You look like you were having digestive problems," Chichi said softly.

Bulma shook her head fervently. Had she really been frowning that noticeably? "No, I'm fine. Thanks." To show Chichi that she was fine, Bulma took another bite of her food with a smile. Her troubles with Vegeta were soon forgotten as she rejoined the conversations.

* * *

After dinner, Kinomi had requested a spar with Raditz outside. Naturally, he'd agreed to it but Chichi had put a halt to that before it even started. Kinomi was not happy about that. "Why the hell not? I haven't had a decent spar in weeks! It's not like Bulma can stand up to my punches. No offense, Blue."

"None taken," Bulma replied with a smile.

Chichi shook her head. "Your _spars_ with Raditz often become battles of who can tear more of the other's clothes off before you find yourself naked. I will not have you flashing yourself all over the place. You aren't a little girl anymore and that," Chichi gestured to Kinomi's athletic but womanly body, "is quite obvious."

Kinomi looked down at her body. She frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't spar, Chichi. Besides, how else are we supposed to keep track of who wins each bout?" she inquired.

"Kinomi, I want to talk with you." Everyone turned to see Vegeta standing in the doorway to the house. He had spoken to his sister. However, his eyes were looking at Bulma. She was looking at Kinomi. The moment her eyes shifted to Vegeta, he looked away. The princess sighed and walked over to her brother. They disappeared back inside the house.

Bulma jumped when Turles came up beside her. "You up to watching us spar?" he asked with a smirk. Bulma smiled back and nodded. She followed him and his brothers out further from the house.

* * *

Inside, Kinomi followed Vegeta to his room. She sat on a large chair as he sat on his bed. For a moment, the two just stared at one another in silence. Then Vegeta cleared his throat. "What of your surveillance?"

Kinomi snickered. "So we're calling it surveillance now?" She ran a hand through her hair. "We experimented a little with her powers. After watching her take someone apart at an almost cellular level, I challenged her to try it again. The results were... interesting."

"Just get to the point."

"Okay, okay." Kinomi sat forward and looked directly at Vegeta. "You already know she can read minds. Well, it appears that she can do that without even trying. She can't really turn that power off. So, she has to deliberately keep a wall up so that she isn't overrun with every thought from every person within a certain area. I got her to test out some of her other powers; to try and see if she could repeat what she did to that guy."

"And?"

"I already said the results were interesting. She shattered a glass orb. She can take things apart and put them back together with just her mind. It seemed hard for her to control at first but once she got the hang of it..." Kinomi noticed how narrow her brother's eyes had gotten. "What is it, Geta?"

"She can destroy things with only her mind. Does anyone else know about this particular aspect of her power?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Even she did not realize she could do it until a few weeks ago. I have a feeling this is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of what she's capable of." Kinomi gave her brother a sneaky look. "You know, she wanted to meet you," she said. She was embellishing what Bulma had said, but she wanted to play with Vegeta. The look on his face was priceless. Kinomi fought the urge to start laughing at him.

Vegeta stared in confusion at his sister. _Why would she want to meet me? That doesn't make sense_, he thought. He could tell that Kinomi was enjoying this tidbit of information she dropped on him. He rolled his eyes and looked away from her. He pondered what meeting Bulma would do. _If I can gain her trust maybe she will ally herself with us. Her powers could be interesting and useful in the long-term_.

"You're not gonna disappoint her, are you?" Kinomi's grin let Vegeta know she was clearly up to no good. He looked away from her and stood up. Kinomi began to call out for her brother as he left. She'd just remembered something else about Bulma. However, she decided it was probably best not to tell him yet.

* * *

Bulma ducked as Kakarrot sailed over her head. He landed a few feet behind her. In less than a second, he was up and flying back towards his twin. Bulma laughed as the two continued their tussle. They moved so fast that it had been hard for Bulma to follow them at first. She did not know how, but she managed to feel their presence through her mind and their movements became clearer. It amazed her how they could move so fast and be in total control.

Turles pounded Kakarrot back into the ground. "You've been kissing a helluva lotta dirt today, brother! Does it ever get boring when I kick your ass?" he taunted with a laugh. He sloppily dodged the blast Kakarrot sent up at him. "Hey! You almost hit me with that!" He flew down to attack his twin once more.

The lavender-haired telepath found it interesting how they could defy the laws of gravity. She'd only seen Frieza, Zarbon, and Dodoria do it without assistance. Kinomi had never flown in front of her, but Bulma had seen how high she could jump. If her compatriots could do it, Bulma was certain Kinomi could as well.

Bulma had not realized she'd zoned out until she heard Kakarrot screaming. She blinked a few times and saw a blue ball of light coming towards her. She knew enough about Frieza's soldiers to know what it was that was coming towards her. Almost simultaneously with her noticing the blast, a figure shielded her body. She clung on to whatever it was in front of her, squeezing her eyes shut.

A blast from Kakarrot should've left Vegeta feeling at the least a bit tingly and his clothes would be singed. Instead of feeling that mild shock, he felt nothing from the attack except the initial contact, which felt like someone simply touching him. This fact seemed strange to him, but he did not dwell on it for too long. He was more concerned with the frail girl that was clinging to him as if her life depended upon it. Her fingers were gripping his shirt and she was near hyperventilating.

"Woman," he said harshly. She flinched and only clung to him tighter. Vegeta should not have been able to feel her fingernails pinching his skin through the fabric of his shirt, but he did. It was in direct conflict of what happened with Kakarrot's attack. He grabbed her by her shoulders as gently as he could manage and pulled her off of him.

He felt cold.

Bulma looked up at Vegeta from her seat on the dusty ground. The ringing in her ears calmed when she met his eyes. She had heard his voice, but could not respond readily. She looked away from him, feeling naked under his gaze. "Don't kill Kakarrot. It was an accident," she murmured as she stared at the ground. Her eyes widened when she realized what she said.

_She... read my mind_, Vegeta thought. He released her quickly.

Bulma looked at Vegeta. Once the contact with him was severed, she could no longer hear any of his thoughts. So much was confusing her with this situation. He was looking at her in veiled shock. Slowly, the rest of the world began to come back into play. Chichi and Kakarrot ran over to her.

"I'm so sorry, Bulma! I forgot you were right there!" Kakarrot was close to hysterical. He flinched when Vegeta hit him in his chest. "Ow! What was that for, Vegeta?"

"You dumbass! Do you know what will happen if she so much as skins her knee?" Vegeta yelled at him.

"Vegeta, it's okay. I'm fine," Bulma said quietly. He rounded on her. She narrowed her eyes at him. "It's okay. I'm not as fragile as you think. I could've... handled that shot from Kakarrot."

_At least I think I could have if I tried hard enough_, she thought.

Vegeta snorted. Bulma blinked a few times. It was the first time she'd seen any other expression on his face. Seeing him almost-smile was intriguing to say the least. He seemed to notice the wonder in her eyes and went back to frowning. "Woman, you would've been cooked like a piece of meat had you taken that blast."

Bulma narrowed her eyes slightly. "Is that so?" She stepped around Vegeta, suddenly feeling empowered. He was not going to demean her abilities. If anything, she had a feeling that she had more to do with Vegeta brushing off that attack than he did. After all, he came into contact with her. She looked at Kakarrot. "Do whatever you just did again, Kakarrot."

Kakarrot gave her the blankest stare he could manage. "What? I'm not going to shoot at you again. Vegeta's right. I could've really hurt you. You aren't strong enough to..." His voice trailed off at the glare Bulma was giving him. She was almost as scary as Chichi with that look in her eye. "Well, if Kinomi doesn't mind, I'll do it. She's your bodyguard."

Bulma looked over at Kinomi. Kinomi glanced her way. She knew she wasn't going to talk Bulma out of this. Vegeta had practically thrown down the gauntlet by calling her weak in so many words. _She's more like him than I initially thought_, the Saiyan princess mused. _I don't want to hear any whining if this goes awry, Blue_.

Bulma blinked when she heard Kinomi talk to her. She smiled at her before turning back to face Kakarrot. He had walked a decent distance away and was now looking at her apprehensively. He raised his hand slowly. In the time it took Bulma to blink, he had sent another attack her way.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow as Kakarrot's attack slowed down to a stop. It came to rest right in front of Bulma's face before splitting into hundreds of thousands of smaller balls. They dotted the area like a starry night sky. After a few moments, they fizzled out into nothing. Bulma turned and faced Vegeta, a smirk on her face. Without a word, she flounced past him and over to Kinomi. The younger girl was giggling at her older brother's face.

Tarble watched as Bulma and Kinomi spoke animatedly about the feat the telepath had accomplished. He looked at his elder brother. Vegeta was almost red in the face, but he did not say anything. Instead, he caught up with Bulma and Kinomi as the two started to head back to the house. He tapped Bulma on the shoulder and she turned to face him. Tarble's eyes widened for a moment and he felt heat rush to his face. Being so close to her was different from staring at her from a distance. _She's incredibly beautiful_, he thought.

"Um... How did you do that? Stop Kakarrot's blast, I mean," he said shyly.

The telepath smiled at Tarble. She could tell without even reading him that he was nervous to be so close to her. "A gift I was born with."

"A gift?"

"Yes. My people are... were known for their great mental abilities. Some were far stronger than others. It is said that people from Aoi had the ability to bring out the best in people. We can unlock latent abilities. However, everyone is destined for a special person to awaken. Sometimes we never find our mates," Bulma replied.

Kinomi narrowed her eyes. "So, have you ever found your _special person_?"

Bulma laughed. "I don't think so. I might never find them, either. There has to be a least a one in a trillion chance that I would cross paths with my chosen. The last thing I remember my parents telling me is that I would find them, but I doubt it," she said. Her voice was cheery, but there was a sad undertone in it.

Vegeta stood with his back to the others as they asked and listened as Bulma told them about where she came from. He went over what she said in the beginning about finding someone to give power to. Vegeta was concerned with that part. _What if Frieza is that person? What if that's the reason he's been keeping her alive. If I take her out of the picture_... Vegeta faced the others. Bulma was laughing and smiling along with them. _She doesn't look like she could hurt a fly_.

"If you can read minds, why don't you tell me what Chichi is thinking?" Kakarrot asked sneakily. Chichi slapped his arm.

"I will do no such thing, Kakarrot! A woman's thoughts are very private," Bulma reprimanded. "I only read thoughts when I have to. I never want to intrude on anyone's privacy. That's unethical."

"But you do it for Frieza," Raditz said, an accusatory tone in his voice. Bulma's smile dropped and she nodded. "I take it you don't get a kick out of it."

Bulma looked at him. "Why would I? What I report back to Frieza could mean the death of someone. I don't like sending people to their doom."

"Has it ever occurred to you to lie?" Turles snorted.

The lavender beauty's blue eyes narrowed slightly. "It has and I have. The problem with lying is that I can't control if the person continues to do whatever they were accused of. Seeing how Frieza's soldiers aren't the sharpest tools in the shed," she looked pointedly at Turles, "they're quite likely to be repeat offenders and be brought before Frieza a second time. Essentially, if I lie it will most likely get back to Frieza and I will be punished as well." Bulma turned her head to reveal a scar where her jugular vein would be.

Kinomi's nonchalant expression dropped as she noticed the scar on Bulma's neck. It was right where one would aim to slit the jugular vein. She found it strange that she had never noticed the scar before. "Where did you get such a scar?"

"Frieza is not a fan of deception under any circumstances. His special punishment for that is to slit my throat with his nail and allow me to bleed out right up until the point where I would die. Then he stuffs me in a regeneration tank and doesn't sedate me as I heal. Usually, he doesn't like to see scars, but this one is supposed to be a reminder of what happens when I deceive him."

Vegeta was still facing away from the group, looking towards the incoming clouds. He could hear the silence that befell the group at the news of Frieza's punishment on Bulma. While he could believe Frieza's method of punishment, he could not help but wonder what had kept Bulma alive for so long. From just the short time that she had been touching him, he could feel that if he even grabbed her too hard her bones would snap like brittle twigs. Her body could withstand next to nothing but her mind and will was as strong as they came.

The elder prince turned his body so that he was standing perpendicular to the group. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Bulma. She had gone back to telling the rest of his kin about her strange powers. Every time he looked at her, he felt empowered; as if he could do anything. At the same time, he felt secure and his mind was at ease. It was a disgusting feeling to say the least. After being so accustomed to _turmoil_, Vegeta found _peace_ to be alarmingly unpleasant. Growling, Vegeta turned and walked a few feet before taking off.

The others watched him go while Chichi crossed her arms, annoyed with the prince. "It's just like Vegeta to fly _towards_ the storms," she said with a sigh.

* * *

Much later that night, Bulma's eyes snapped open. The cold wind had woken her up. She sat up immediately and looked towards her terrace doors. The wind was no longer blowing, but a steady rain began to fall. Bulma got out of bed and walked towards the terrace. She looked down over the edge and smiled.

Little known to many, Bulma had a habit of sneaking out of her chambers in the rain. Frieza's men tended to be lax during rainstorms. The storms were a turn-off for any soldier. One could barely see and the sand of Planet 1 became thick mud that was hard to walk through in boots. It was no trouble for Bulma's tiny bare feet.

The blue-eyed teenager climbed down from her balcony and scurried towards the lush forest behind Frieza's palace. She always wondered why Frieza chose to put her rooms on in the wing where there was a direct trail to the forest. Knowing Frieza, he knew well that Bulma would sneak off. She was positive he had a way to track her. Besides, there were only so many places that were habitable on Planet 1. Frieza would find her if she ever decided to run away.

The thick trees shielded Bulma from a lot of the rain. She maneuvered around in the darkness, knowing how to get to her destination by heart. By the time she arrived to the clearing, the rain had slowed to a drizzle. Bulma, soaked to the bone in her small nightie, walked out towards the misty waterfall. She moved towards it but halted when she saw a dark figure disappear behind the waterfall. Bulma reached out with her mind, but she found nothing.

_Maybe it was just a trick of the light_, she thought as she glanced upwards at the clearing night sky. Planet 1 had one tiny moon that reflected what it could from the planet's far off parent star. _It was probably just a shadow_. Bulma moved out towards the lake and waterfall. Like she always did, she began hopping across the stones to the large rock in the center of the lake. When she got there, she climbed up on the large rock. It had gotten easier the older (and therefore taller) she got, but Bulma still had to work for it.

Once she was atop the giant rock, she turned away from the waterfall and let the wind hit her. Closing her eyes, Bulma swayed slightly. The stronger the wind blew, the drier she became. She vaguely wondered if she was causing the wind. She had a tendency to let her mind wander. "Maybe I am the cause. Whenever I open my mind, things can bend to my will. Maybe even the wind can come under my control," she whispered to herself.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard behind her. Bulma's eyes opened and she turned. She froze where she stood as she watched someone walk out from behind the waterfall. _Who is it? How did I not know they were there? I should've sensed_... Her questions were answered before she could finish the thought.

* * *

Vegeta was caught by surprise when he saw a pair of glowing blue eyes glaring at him from across the lake. Frieza's mind-reader was standing on the giant rock. Her eyes were wide with shock and then narrowed in recognition. It almost made him angry. If anything, fear should be present in her eyes. He'd caught her out alone.

_I shouldn't be worried about that. How much did she see_? From her frozen stance, Vegeta could easily deduce that she had not known he was there until she heard his footsteps. As far as he knew, the woman could not sense him by his power. Although he was suppressing it greatly so as to avoid being detected by scouters, he figured that no matter how much he lowered it, she could find him by simply hearing his thoughts. _But she looks like she truly had no idea I was here_.

"I suppose you're going to drag me back to the fortress, aren't you?" She spoke loud enough for him to hear. She was gripping her skimpy nightshirt as the wind threatened to blow it up. But the wind was playing havoc with her hair, which was in a state of being soaked and dry, giving it a wavy appearance. Her feet were inching to the edge of the rock. It was as though she was seconds away from bolting in the opposite direction.

"You're the omniscient one here, woman. Shouldn't you be able to tell what my next move will be?" Vegeta inquired. He watched Bulma's face contort slightly.

"I do not read minds unless I am told to. I'd rather not know what goes on in the minds of everyone I come across."

"Really? You read mine just fine and without my permission earlier. Where was your ethical stance then?"

Bulma bit her lip. She had no idea why she had been able to read Vegeta's thoughts earlier. After weeks of not being able to pick up so much as static from him, she could suddenly hear how he was going to beat some sense into Kakarrot for his reckless stunt. However, as he stood before her now, she could hear nothing. As far as Bulma was concerned, he was not even standing across the lake from her.

But, she was not going to let him know that. "That was purely accidental. I got caught up in the moment and let my concentration slip," she replied smoothly. He seemed to buy her excuse as he simply crossed his arms and looked away from her. "Well, what are you doing out here? I thought you didn't stay on the fortress grounds."

"That's none of your concern. The real question is why are you out here? My sister will be reprimanded if Frieza finds out you are not in your own rooms. Is it wise to be roaming about in this forest alone? You never know what kind of monsters live here," Vegeta said, his voice just as smooth.

"I've been coming here for years, prince. I come out here when I want to clear my mind. It tends to get tough and I can't take the pain anymore."

Vegeta found himself becoming interested. He wanted to know how her mind worked; all of the power she possessed. What did she mean by _tough_? She must have kept her word on not reading his thoughts because she did not comment. "Tough? Pain? I doubt your little pampered ass knows a thing about true pain. Frieza treats you like royalty in comparison to the rest of us." The words came out harsh and unforgiving. Vegeta could tell he struck a nerve.

All of a sudden, Bulma felt the overwhelming desire to share everything with him. That feeling was quickly washed away by her anger at being dismissed. This was the second time he'd done that. She climbed down from the rock and hopped across the smaller rocks to Vegeta. He watched her with something that vaguely resembled amusement in his eyes. The moment she was in front of him, just in front of the waterfall, the expression was shielded. Bulma held out her hand. Vegeta looked at her outstretched hand cautiously. She nodded eagerly. After another moment, Vegeta touched her hand.

For a moment, it felt like Vegeta was being held underwater. His hearing became muddled as if his ears were filled with water. After a moment, the feeling passed. The sound of rushing water was replaced with voices. The voices overlapped with one another. Some were loud while others were merely whispers. Some were lascivious and vulgar while others were sad and melancholy. Soon, the noise overwhelmed Vegeta and he released Bulma's hand, nearly throwing her down on the rock.

"What the fuck was that?" His voice was a low growl. "What the hell did you do to me?" He now sounded pained.

Bulma knew immediately that he was not pleased. He clawed blindly at his ears, turning away from her. She immediately felt bad for subjecting him to that. Bulma bit her lip. Being exposed to that much had to be tough. She knew firsthand that it could make one go crazy. She had almost lost herself once the voices started to get louder when she was 10 years old. Bulma knew she had to bring him back to reality somehow.

Vegeta flinched as he felt scrawny arms hook under his own. A small body pressed against him. Suddenly, the feeling of madness calmed but his body stayed tense and trembling. He could not bring his heart rate under control. Vegeta knew if he started panicking that it would only make his condition worse. The feeling was akin to when he had powered up on the deserted planet. "Woman..."

She tightened her hold on him, unwilling to release him until she knew he was okay. "Breathe," she whispered. She felt Vegeta exhale long and slow. His shoulders slumped slightly and the tension was released from his body. "I resent being called a frustrating woman," Bulma retorted quietly. Then her eyes opened wide. She released Vegeta and shuffled back and away from him.

The prince turned and glared at Bulma. "I thought your morality kept you from reading my mind, woman," he said.

Bulma frowned and crossed her arms. "It was an accident." It was frustrating for Bulma. She could only read his mind while touching him. Then, when she did she had no control over it. His thoughts just came in at a steady pace and against her will.

_What is it about him that I can't control? This isn't fair_, she thought angrily.

Vegeta watched as she fought within her mind. He wondered if she knew how expressive her features became when she retreated into her own thoughts. He watched her silently for a moment, mildly fascinated with her comical expressions. "Woman, what did you do to me?"

Bulma's eyes flicked over to Vegeta's. Planet 1's moon had shed a little more light on them and she could see his eyes more clearly now. He was staring intently at her, the amusement gone from his features once again. Bulma looked towards the waterfall. "I showed you what I hear day in and day out. When I was younger, I had no control over what I heard. The constant voices in my head nearly drove me insane. I found out that with a little effort, I could push the voices to the back of my mind. It's like constructing a wall. What you heard was only a fraction of what I can hear, though," she replied.

"And why did you feel the need to share that with me? Your plight doesn't concern me."

"You said I am treated like I am royalty and that I don't know pain. Kinomi has said something similar as well." Bulma looked back at Vegeta. "You've been in your fair share of battles. You've killed and have seen others kill. You are no stranger to pain and suffering as you have witnessed it all. But tell me this: have you ever heard the final thoughts of someone right before they die? Have you ever heard what goes through their minds when they cannot voice the indescribable pain they are in? Watching someone be tortured or watching them die is a hell of a lot different from hearing their final thoughts as those acts happen."

Vegeta mulled over what Bulma said. He had no response for her words. The look she was giving him was disconcerting as well. It felt as though she was stripping him down; not physically, but mentally. After a moment, she broke the mental tug-of-war and looked back at the waterfall. He would rather die than admit it, but Vegeta somehow felt much more relaxed around her. He did not expect her to speak anymore.

"I envy you, Vegeta," she whispered. It was not intended for him to hear, but Vegeta's hearing was far above average.

"Envy? I am the last person you should envy, woman," he retorted.

Bulma looked back at him, a sad smile on her face. "Both our planets might have been destroyed. We both lost our kind. Though you may not think it much, I envy you because you are not alone. You have your younger siblings and the others. You are their leader. I'm sure it's a big responsibility that was forced on you, but you don't have to ever be alone in your endeavors. There are people who will fight tooth and nail for you."

Vegeta was taken aback by her words. For the longest, Vegeta had considered himself something of a loner and that his situation was anything but desirable. He was basically a slave to Frieza, but he had more freedom than what was afforded others. Maybe he had taken that for granted.

Here was this girl who was generally in the same boat as him, but she was completely different. Except for a maid who was most likely only there to feed Frieza information on her wellbeing, Bulma was completely alone. While Vegeta was 1 of 8 others who survived his planet's destruction, Bulma was the only one left. She was the last of her kind. She was alone and she was trapped.

Upon first glance, Bulma's plight had seemed somewhat saccharine while still somewhat sour compared to his own dangerous situation. If he took a closer glance, he could tell that Bulma was fighting to keep from losing hope. She knew that every day that passed was one day closer to dying alone and a slave.

Bulma looked up at the sky. Planet 1's moon had disappeared through the trees and the clearing was becoming darker. "I should go back." She started hopping across the rocks to the other side of the pond. About halfway across, she looked back at Vegeta, still smiling. "Maybe I'll see you here again."

Once she was gone, Vegeta punched the solid rock behind the waterfall. A decent-sized crack appeared. Never had he experienced so many different emotions in the span of 30 minutes. What kind of spell had this woman cast upon him? Within that short amount of time, Vegeta underwent serenity, fear, anger, sadness, and warmth. What he felt now paled in comparison to the others. It was not quite guilt or shame, but it was close.

_I feel like a complete bastard_, Vegeta thought. He punched the rocks again and a chunk fell out. He'd never felt remorseful. He had not any reason to. Even when disciplining his siblings as children and when they would cry and run to Nappa, he had not felt a twinge of regret. However, now he felt like maybe he should not have misjudged Bulma like he had and said those things to her.

Standing all by himself in the clearing, Vegeta felt as alone as Bulma felt.


	7. 7: Whipped

**Destiny**

**Chapter 7: Whipped**

* * *

Bulma and Kinomi ate their breakfast in the mess hall of the fortress the next morning. Kinomi noticed that Bulma seemed oddly lost in thought. Usually the older girl did most of the talking during their meals together. It was strange to see her so quiet. Kinomi could only figure it had something to do with why Bulma sneaked out the night before. She cleared her throat just loud enough to gain Bulma's attention.

"Did you say something?" Bulma asked, looking up at Kinomi.

Kinomi took a bite out of a strange-looking fruit. "I was just wondering about your little excursion last night. It's left you awfully quiet this morning. Nothing bad happened did it?" The Saiyan had to resist laughing at Bulma's face.

"How did you know..."

"Minuscule though it may be, your life force is always detectable as long as you're alive. You'll never be able to hide from me, Blue. Now, are you gonna tell me what's got you so quiet?"

Bulma hummed and looked back down at her plate. They were not alone in the mess hall and anyone could hear them. She doubted it would go over well if anyone knew she'd spoken with Vegeta. She leaned forward, closing the distance between her and Kinomi. "I just met someone out by the waterfall. We had a conversation and it just made me think of my home. That's all." She did not know why she left out the identity of the person she met, but she felt she had to for some reason.

Kinomi stared at Bulma for a moment before taking another bite of the fruit. "I see. Well, don't get too lost in thought. Frieza might ask for you today. A few people just came in this morning."

"Oh joy," Bulma intoned with a roll of her eyes.

* * *

_He's distracted_, Kakarrot thought as he punched Vegeta towards the ground. The prince managed to slow his descent enough to only leave imprints of his feet in dust. He looked back up at Kakarrot, clearly disgusted with himself for letting his mind wander. _And now he's mad_. Kakarrot began fending off the prince. Again, Vegeta's concentration faltered for less than a second. However, that was all the time Kakarrot needed for an opening. He phased behind Vegeta and caught him in a full nelson.

"Let me go, Kakarrot," Vegeta growled.

Kakarrot chuckled, tightening his hold on the struggling prince. "Vegeta, you should be asking yourself how you ended up in this position," he said. He heard the prince mumble something that sounded like a threat by its tone and simply chuckled. Raising an eyebrow, he watched as Vegeta shifted around. Kakarrot heard the distinct _**POP**_ of joints being shifted and before he knew it, Vegeta was out of his grasp and kicking him in the stomach. He went careening to the ground.

Vegeta landed a few feet away from Kakarrot. He knew perfectly well how he let Kakarrot best him. Of course, he was not completely _bested_ but willingly dislocating his shoulders was not something he wanted to resort to on a regular basis. Using his muscles, he fixed his arms.

"It still amazes me how you can do that," Kakarrot said as he stood. He dusted himself off and looked over at Vegeta. "Feel like sharing what's on your mind?" He tested the waters. Getting Vegeta to talk about anything was like pulling teeth.

The prince glared at Kakarrot for a moment before crossing his arms and looking back in the direction of Frieza's fortress. "No," he stated simply.

"You can't keep everything bottled up forever, Vegeta. It'll drive you crazy eventually."

"I have my outlets, Kakarrot. You needn't worry about me. On your guard. We're not through." Before Kakarrot could properly prepare himself, Vegeta was attacking again.

It was not often that Kakarrot let his frustration with the prince show, but this time he did. Seeing the many openings in Vegeta's attacks, he took advantage of one. Before the prince could recover, Kakarrot continued his assault.

Chichi walked outside when she felt Kakarrot's energy spike. It was unlike him to raise his power unless Vegeta did so first. She had been monitoring their spar just in case she needed to intervene. Unusually when she did, it was Vegeta she was pulling off of Kakarrot. This time it was Kakarrot she was knocking off of Vegeta. "What the hell is going on here?" Chichi yelled, putting herself between Kakarrot and Vegeta.

Vegeta stared up at the sky from his spot on the dusty ground. He tuned out the tongue-thrashing Chichi was giving Kakarrot and lost himself in his thoughts. He knew why he could not focus. Narrowing his eyes, he stood up and zoomed past Chichi. Chichi predicted his move and grabbed his fist right before he decked Kakarrot in the jaw. Vegeta cut his eyes to Chichi. Never one to back down, Chichi squeezed his fist, letting him know that his next opponent would be her if he did not stop. While Chichi was significantly weaker than him, her underhandedness rivaled his own. Chichi would find a way to make the fight as miserable and uncomfortable as possible just to teach him a lesson. Vegeta backed off and took to the sky.

Chichi turned back towards Kakarrot and crossed her arms. "What the hell was that about?" she inquired. Kakarrot did not answer immediately, instead choosing to cross his arms childishly and look away from her. "Kakarrot!"

"Something's wrong with him and he's being a dick about it. Life could be so much easier if Vegeta would just _**TALK**_ to someone!" Kakarrot yelled back at Chichi. The other woman blinked a few times before smiling. If Vegeta had anything resembling a _best friend_ it was definitely Kakarrot. Vegeta had his own way of sharing his feelings on things and only Kakarrot knew how to decipher them.

"Kakarrot, you know how Vegeta is. He needs to do things his own way. Although I do agree with you that something is definitely on his mind lately. All we can do is wait and be there when he needs us to act. Don't push him. Got it?" Chichi looked sternly at Kakarrot. The taller Saiyan pouted but still nodded in agreement.

* * *

Kinomi's ears twitched when she heard footsteps behind her. She extended her senses to feel that Frieza was approaching. She looked towards her lavender-haired charge and saw she was rearranging a bouquet of flowers with her mental abilities. _We've got company, Blue_, Kinomi warned.

Bulma blinked, her concentration dropping. The flowers fell in her lap, a jumbled mess. She looked towards Kinomi for answers but before she could ask, she recognized Frieza's thought pattern. Bulma went back to looking as casual as possible. The small but feral dictator made his appearance from around a tree. Bulma did not look his way and instead chose to wait until he addressed her.

"Out in the gardens? You must be in quite the mood to be in here," Frieza said as he approached Bulma.

"Kinomi had never seen them. Besides, it gets boring in my quarters. A change of scenery is always welcome," Bulma said as she arranged the flowers in a more presentable bouquet. She looked over at Frieza to see him leaning against a tree. "What do you want?"

Frieza feigned hurt. "Is it too out of character for me to want to see how one of my favorites is doing? You should know that only two people hold that distinction, Bulma. You should be pleased that I hold you in such esteem," he said.

Bulma rolled her eyes. "I'm only your favorite because I make money for you. Now, what do you want?"

Kinomi swallowed a chuckle. She knew she stretched the limits of what tone of voice she could take with Frieza but Bulma was like her brother; they just didn't care how they sounded when the spoke to the most feared being in the galaxy. It amazed her to no end. If she gave Frieza a look that even spoke of insubordination she would be punished.

Frieza did notice Kinomi's small chortle but chose to ignore it. Instead, he inhaled slowly before speaking. "In two days, my father will be here," he replied.

The bouquet fell from Bulma's hands. She looked over at Frieza. "Why?"

"Does that really matter? You aren't still afraid of him, are you?" Frieza chuckled a little after speaking. He watched Bulma roll her eyes and bend to gather the flowers back up. "You don't need to be afraid. You know I'll never let anything happen to you."

"I'm not afraid of anyone, Frieza. Least of all anyone in your bloodline," Bulma retorted sharply.

While Frieza certainly believed what Bulma said to be true, Kinomi was not fooled in the least. Bulma's body language spoke volumes even if her words did not. Something unnerved her greatly about the prospect of seeing Frieza's kin. Kinomi had only heard of Frieza's relatives from Vegeta. She knew that for the most part they were an unsavory bunch and Vegeta made it a point to keep her, Chichi, and Tarble from their sight. Nappa had called them vile and filthy beings. If Nappa called anyone _vile_ or _filthy_, they most likely were nothing short of the scum of the universe.

"I believe you, Bulma. However, he has asked to see you. Be sure to wear that dress I had sent to you earlier." Frieza turned away from her and looked at Kinomi. "You are to attend as well. I don't believe he's ever met you." With a small mischievous smirk, Frieza left the two alone once more.

Once he was gone, Bulma squeezed the flowers in her hands. The stems crushed and the petals fell to her feet. She then threw the damaged bouquet to the ground and got to her feet. Kinomi watched Bulma closely but said nothing. If she was anything like Vegeta, and she was, she would speak on her own.

Bulma whirled around and looked at Kinomi when she was sure Frieza was out of earshot. "I don't want to go anywhere near that man," she said while grinding her teeth together.

"Why? What's wrong with Frieza's father?" Kinomi probably knew that something traumatizing had probably happened with Bulma and Frieza's father, but she wanted to see just how traumatizing it had been. She was not going into meeting with Frieza's kin with high expectations other than the expectation that they were either as bad as or worse than Frieza himself.

"He... is just scary." Bulma did not seem to want to elaborate on her experience with Frieza's kin. Kinomi simply nodded, not wanting to push the boundaries of the new trust Bulma had in her just yet. She had a feeling that if she waited long enough, Bulma would eventually tell her on her own.

The thoughts racing through Bulma's mind were the furthest from that, though. Instead, she was once again plotting. The memories of her experience with Cold, Frieza's father, were still fresh. For years she'd kept them locked away, but sometimes she still had the nightmares. _I haven't had one in months though. Why now is he coming? What does he want_? Bulma squeezed her eyes shut, feeling a panic attack coming. She needed to calm down. _Something must be done_.

* * *

Vegeta found himself walking the grounds of Frieza's fortress. It had not been what he wanted to do, but somehow his flight had taken him back to the fortress. He was not ready to return home just to hear Chichi screech at him. He was not nearly in the mood to effectively ignore her and it would all just end in a big fight and screaming match.

Roaming the grounds, Vegeta could sense his sister and her ward clear on the other side. He came across a group of women being ushered around by some soldiers. By the way they were dressed, Vegeta could tell they were concubines. Concubines were a commodity that he did not partake in. The stories he heard of men being robbed blind and on some occasions killed by vengeful concubines was enough to deter him from ever seeking them out. However, one concubine caught his eye. She was blonde with piercing blue eyes. By the way she was dressed, Vegeta knew she held some importance among the ranks as far as concubines went. He stopped walking and watched the scene while leaning against a wall.

The blonde spotted him not long after he started watching them. Something about her seemed familiar, but Vegeta could not quite place it. He narrowed his eyes when she left the group of girls to come over to him. She was fully clothed with flowing robes of silk on. Vegeta figured she was hiding a weapon somewhere on her person. When she stopped in front of him, he said nothing and waited on her to address him.

"You're even more handsome than I've been led to believe, Prince Vegeta," she said.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow at her. "Is that so? Your flattery is unnecessary."

"I was not flattering you. I was simply stating a fact." She crossed her arms. "I can say that your voice is definitely different, though."

The prince's eyes went from mild shock to suspicious with their narrowing. "What?"

The blonde stepped up closer to him. She moved slowly so as not to seem threatening. When she was close to enough, she leaned forward towards his left ear. "You do not recognize my voice, _Blue_?" she whispered. She stepped back immediately, avoiding Vegeta as he reached for her. Smiling, she turned around to walk back to her group of ladies. "I'll make sure to give you the best services my ladies can offer, Prince Vegeta." She spoke loud enough for everyone in the area to hear. She made it seem as though Vegeta had propositioned her. He took it to mean something totally different.

_Those holograms are not nearly accurate enough. I would've never guessed she was Yellow simply by her hair. Still, what the hell is she doing here_?

Vegeta did not mull over his thoughts long. He was quick to notice the distressed energy radiating from near his sister. Frieza had just been in that area so he figured it had something to do with Bulma. He found it strange that he could pick her out so clearly. Shaking his head, he turned and headed out of the fortress. Just as he stepped outside, Cui walked up to him.

"Well if it isn't the little prince. My how you've... grown," Cui said with a small snicker.

"Why are you here, Cui? Shouldn't you be up Cold's ass and cleaning all the leftover shit right now?" Vegeta responded in kind. His tone said that he was completely serious in what one would usually laugh at. Cui's smirk died immediately and Vegeta counted that as a win.

"You'd do well to watch your tone with those that outrank you."

"If licking the balls of one of Frieza's kind is considered _outranking_ me, then I'll be happy to remain in my current position. Besides, rank has little to do when it comes to power." Vegeta looked Cui over once. "You're not even a workout for me any longer. Too much asskissing has left you in my wake. I'm not sure how Cold will feel knowing he has such a weakling working under him."

Cui's smirk returned to his face. "You'll have an opportunity to tell him in a couple of days." Vegeta paused mid-step and faced Cui again. "He will be coming for a little visit along with Cooler. Perhaps you and Cooler could... catch up." The purple alien let out a cackle and turned away from Vegeta, entering the fortress as Vegeta left.

The Saiyan prince was not pleased in the least. The last person he wanted to see was Frieza's older brother Cooler. This turn of events would definitely put a damper on his plans for the next few days. He would have to rush his audience with _Yellow_.

* * *

_Bulma stood before Frieza's father, Cold. She was nervously shifting from foot to foot as he watched her. She had no idea why Frieza had left her alone with this man. He reminded her of a taller, more muscular Frieza. Cold even had the same creepy smile Frieza did. He sat in the large armchair, holding a glass of wine and still smiling at her. It took all of Bulma's will not to turn and bolt out of the room without looking back._

_ "You look frightened, child. Why would a pretty thing like you be scared? I don't scare you, do I?" Cold asked. He stood up and slowly began to approach Bulma._

_ Inching back a little, Bulma twisted the hem of her dress in her hands. She hated how skinny she was. She could tell it was painfully obvious that her knees were shaking. She shook her head fervently in response to Cold's question. "I'm not afraid, sir," she finally answered verbally._

_ Cold stopped right in front of Bulma. He towered over her. She inched back a little more as he knelt down to her level. "You're such a pretty girl, Bulma. Your hair," Cold took a lock of it between his fingers, "is such a beautiful shade of purple. You know purple is a color of royalty." He released her hair and took her chin in his much larger fingers. Cold lifted Bulma's head in order for him to look her in the eyes._

_ She felt her eyes involuntarily begin to water. She did not want to cry, but the irrational fear she felt at the moment was taking over her. The moment he touched her skin, she felt extremely dirty. She wanted to know what he was going to do to her. Squeezing her eyes shut, Bulma tentatively read Cold's thoughts._

_ To say Bulma's sudden movement away from him startled Cold was an understatement. She nearly made him spill his wine. Bulma stumbled back towards the wall. Cold found the doe-eyed girl staring at him with even more fear in her eyes. "What's wrong, child?"_

_ "You... You... I won't let you do it. St-St-St-Stay away from m-m-me," Bulma stammered out. "I'll tell Frieza." Even though she had a feeling that Frieza probably knew what his father had in mind for her, she threw the threat out there anyway. Predictably, Cold laughed in her face._

_ "You're a very entertaining child. I'm glad there's a bit of feistiness in you. I was never one for submissive types." Cold sat his wine glass down and walked over to Bulma again. She watched him with tears running down her face. "How old are you, child?"_

_ "Th-Th-Th-Thirteen," Bulma stuttered. Just as Cold reached for her, Bulma used her smaller size to her advantage and ducked beneath his arm. She took off towards the door across the room. She'd barely taken four steps before Cold grabbed her from behind. "Please let me go!" She struggled but her efforts were fruitless._

_ "But we haven't even gotten to know each other," Cold whispered in her ear as the young girl clawed and scratched at his arm. The attacks barely registered as minor itches. Smirking, he pulled the girl closer to his body. "Now, let's have a little... talk."_

* * *

Vegeta did not realize he was screaming until he rolled off his bed and onto the floor. His room was still pitch black. He brought himself under control quickly, but he'd already woken up the house. Before Vegeta could climb back into bed, Nappa and Kakarrot were fighting to get through his door first. Tarble slipped between the two and ran over to his brother.

"Geta, what's wrong? Why are you..." Tarble barely dodged Vegeta's arm as it shot out to fling him away. "Geta?"

"Don't call me that," Vegeta growled. His head was aching and the noise Kakarrot and Nappa were making was starting to grate on his nerves. He got to his feet and glared at the two men. The moment they caught his look, they settled down.

"What's all this commotion?" Chichi pushed her way through Kakarrot and Nappa while yawning. "Is everything all right?" She looked at Vegeta and Tarble.

Tarble glanced over at his brother. Vegeta was clearly _**NOT**_ all right, but he would not say it. The younger prince rolled his eyes at the stubbornness his brother clung to. "Everything is fine. I suppose Geta had a... _nightmare_," he said. Tarble crossed his arms and left with his nose in the air. He knew he would pay for that comment later. If there was one thing Vegeta hated it was discussion about his dreams. Everyone knew he had occasional nightmares, but no one ever addressed it.

Vegeta made a mental note to beat Tarble into a pulp in training later that day but said nothing in rebuttal. He looked at Chichi, who had somehow shooed Nappa and Kakarrot away. "I'm fine," he said as he climbed back in his bed.

Chichi sighed and watched him in silence for a moment. "If you say so." She turned and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Once she was gone, Vegeta retreated into his thoughts. What he had _dreamt_ was most likely not a dream at all. It was definitely a memory. It had seemed too lucid and real to be a simple nightmare. _A memory that became a nightmare_, he thought. But why was he seeing Bulma's memories? She was not Saiyan and he had no mental bond with her. The only person who's nightmares he ever saw were Tarble's when the boy was young.

Why would he see someone who is not even of the same species as him?

* * *

Kinomi was confused. She found herself in the awkward position of comforting someone else. She had never had to comfort anyone before. She did not even comfort her own twin. She left that up to Chichi. She was far better at it than Kinomi could ever hope to be. But at the moment, the lavender-haired telepath was clinging to her as if she would fade away. Kinomi did only what she'd seen Chichi do: offer her arms as a means of consolation.

Bulma's cries had brought Kinomi back to the conscious plane. She was in Bulma's bedroom less than two seconds later. When she got there, she realized that cries were not what she heard. Kinomi had never heard a more terrifying scream. It sounded as if Bulma was either being ripped limb from limb or tortured. It was anguish and agony she heard. When she shook Bulma awake, the older girl's arms shot out to defend herself. Kinomi was fast enough to dodge them but Bulma had managed to tag her in the chest once. Kinomi felt it far more than she should have.

Once Bulma had woken up from her screaming, she started sobbing and clung to Kinomi. It was in that position that they now sat. Bulma's crying had stopped, but she had not released Kinomi from her death grip.

_What the hell frightened her so much? What had she been dreaming about_? Kinomi looked down at Bulma when she heard a soft snore. Sighing, she pried Bulma from her body and laid her back down in the bed. She'd literally cried herself to sleep. Kinomi stood and left the room.

About 10 minutes after Kinomi left, Bulma's eyes opened. She slipped out of bed, dressed quickly, and left the quarters.

* * *

The entire Saiyan contingent was called to Frieza the next morning. No one was quite prepared for the chaos that was in the fortress. Overnight, there seemed to be a surplus of dead bodies lying about. When they heard where they had to report, the Saiyans grew wary: the Hollow. That was the name of Frieza's personal torture chamber. Somehow, Vegeta was less than surprised for the sight that awaited them.

Bulma and Kinomi on either side of Frieza. Kinomi looked as though she had been smacked around a few times, but other than that she was fine. Bulma's face was red and puffy as if she'd been crying. It did not take a scientist to figure out what the situation here was.

"Ah, your kin has arrived, little one. Are you not happy to see them?" Frieza looked at Kinomi. The girl did not respond in any way. Ignoring her lack of reaction, Frieza glanced out at the rest of the Saiyans. "I'm sure you all saw the destruction Bulma left in her wake. I daresay this is the shortest amount of time between escape attempts that there has ever been. Usually Bulma waits at least six months. It's barely been two."

Chichi decided immediately that Frieza was extremely angry. For all the faux affability he put off, anyone with the slightest bit of sense could see Frieza was beyond incensed. The way Bulma held her head showed that she knew something they did not.

"I was thinking of a fitting punishment for Bulma. Nothing I do seems to work. Once I set aside my initial anger at the situation, I had a small moment of clarity. I realized that this could've all been avoided if someone," Frieza wrapped his tail around Kinomi's neck and slammed her into the floor, "had been doing their job."

Tarble jumped at seeing his sister being manhandled in such a way. Frieza's tail released her and she rolled over. There was a gash on her head. It was a miracle she had not cracked her skull. Kinomi attempted to get to her feet but gave up from her dizziness. She settled for sitting on her knees.

"A bodyguard is supposed to look after their charge. Little one, you failed me in this." Frieza walked forward and grabbed Kinomi by the chin, making her look at him. "Your brother knows very well the punishment I give for failures. Vegeta," he called.

Bulma tore her eyes from the floor and looked at Vegeta. His face was set hard like stone. He appeared indifferent to the situation, but Bulma knew he was anything but. Bulma had never gotten anyone else in trouble. Blinded by her fright, it had completely escaped her that Kinomi would get in trouble along with her if she ever tried to run. Bulma was afraid. She was afraid not for herself but for Kinomi. She had no idea what Frieza was going to do.

"Yes?" Vegeta asked nonchalantly.

Frieza smiled at the prince. He held out his hand and one of the servants handed him a whip. Regular whips did nothing to a Saiyan. The whip Frieza gave Vegeta was adorned with razor-sharp thorns that were sharp enough to whip directly through a Saiyan's hardened skin. "Take this and punish the little one." Frieza held out the whip to Vegeta.

"Frieza, no! It's my fault! It should be me getting punished, not Kinomi! Please don't do this! Don't make him do this!" Bulma got to her feet, pleading to Frieza. "Please!"

"Now, now Bulma. A lesson needs to be learned here." Frieza looked at her. "These are the consequences of your actions. Maybe you'll think twice next time you decide to _run_."

Bulma watched as Vegeta unraveled the whip. Kinomi glared hard at her brother before standing and turning with her back facing him. Bulma's eyes began to water. She'd seen plenty of punishments and deaths before, but never to someone she knew. Never to someone she considered a friend.

_He's not seriously gonna do this, is he_? Kakarrot sent the question out to anyone who was listening.

_What choice does he have, idiot? He can't exactly say that he won't do it. Knowing Frieza, he'll just kill her. Then where would we be_? Nappa responded. He noticed Tarble looking down at the floor. _Don't look away, boy. Do not show weakness_, he said.

Tarble begrudgingly looked up at his twin. She was squeezing her fists together and holding her head up. Her entire body was tense, but she was going to endure the pain with her head held high. _It'll be okay, Nomi_.

_Shut up, asshole_. Her words were harsh but Tarble could hear them waver ever-so-slightly. Even her mind's voice was trembling for what was about to come.

Vegeta sighed. "How many lashes?"

"What is the amount I usually gave you?" Frieza replied with a sick smile.

The prince rolled his eyes. _Twenty lashes. Are you ready_? He watched his sister squeeze her fists tighter. He didn't see the blue of lavender until it was too late.

Kinomi's eyes widened as she heard the sound of the whip cracking, but felt nothing. Then she felt small hands grasp her shoulders. The whip had ripped through Bulma's tunic like scissors. The pain was unlike anything she had ever experienced. The scream that should have accompanied such an attack was caught in Bulma's throat. Kinomi turned her head. "Bulma, what the fuck are you doing?" she yelled at her.

Vegeta stopped before he swung again. Normally it would take at least three lashes before he broke the skin. Bulma's body was clearly more fragile than he could have ever imagined. Then it dawned on him that the girl had thrown herself in front of his sister. _Why would she do that? What the hell is going on in her mind_?

Frieza's eyes narrowed. "I did not tell you to stop, Vegeta," he stated.

"This could potentially kill the woman, Frieza. Her body is far too frail to..."

"I said _I did not tell you to stop, Vegeta_," Frieza repeated, his voice far firmer and leaving no room for discussion or rebuttal.

Vegeta squeezed the whip in his hand. _I do not understand this woman_, he thought as he raised the whip once more.

She managed to hold it in for a while, but on the 8th lash, Bulma let out a bloodcurdling scream that made even Vegeta's stomach turn. Her back was completely bare except for the blood that seemed to be pouring out of her wounds. By the 15th lash, Bulma had slid down to her knees. Her voice had given out and all she could do was silently cry to herself. Her arms trembled as she fought to keep herself from collapsing on the dirty floor.

When he was done, Vegeta tossed the whip to the ground. Seeing Bulma struggling to keep from crumpling to the floor made him nauseous for some reason. He saw his sister whirl around to look at the girl. Her eyes widened in what appeared to be horror. Vegeta knew blood and the horrors of war were the last things to make Kinomi squeamish. So why did she look so concerned for the lavender-haired girl?

"You are a fucking idiot, Blue. Look at you," Kinomi whispered as she examined Bulma's back. The flesh was literally stripped from her and she was sitting in her own blood. Her tunic was all but destroyed and it was barely staying up on her.

Bulma managed to look up slowly and gave Kinomi a weak smile. "I'll be all right. I'm a trooper," she barely whispered. She was still trembling.

"Her punishment is not over," Frieza said, bringing everyone back to look at him. "Bulma still hasn't received her own punishment."

"You can't be serious, Frieza! Look at her! Do you want to kill her? She'll die if you..." Kinomi's face snapped to the side as a hand crossed her face. She looked up to see Vegeta standing over her. "Why did you strike me?"

"Shut up. You have no right to speak on how Frieza punishes the woman. Get up," Vegeta said.

Frieza smirked. "I'm glad you see it my way, Vegeta. Now, if you'd be so kind as to place Bulma in those shackles. Make sure her back is facing me." He pointed to rusty metal shackles on the far wall.

Vegeta looked down at the woman Kinomi was cradling. His sister stared at him, daring him to try and take Bulma from her. "Kakarrot, restrain her."

Kakarrot frowned deeply, but moved forward. Kinomi screamed and scratched at him, but he managed to get her to release Bulma and held her back. He watched Vegeta pull Bulma to her feet roughly. Though his movements were callous, Kakarrot saw in Vegeta's hardened eyes that even he thought this was wrong. Kinomi was screaming all kinds of threats at him and using her legs to try and trip him up, but he held her tight. _Showing Frieza you care is not going to help, Kinomi. Calm down_, he said to her. Her movements slowed as she realized her fault. She looked at Frieza, who was watching her with a curious eye. She snorted and spit in his direction.

As he chained Bulma to the wall, Vegeta noticed that she'd gone strangely quiet. He looked down at her to see her eyes closed. She was still breathing, but it was not as labored. As he chained her left arm up, he heard her whisper softly. "What?" he asked quietly.

"Do not feel guilty," Bulma repeated. Once again, she'd unwillingly read his mind during their contact. Bulma offered him a small smile as she read his bewildered thoughts and him calling her a frustrating woman once more. "I am not a frustrating woman."

Frieza did notice the small interaction that the two had, but said nothing as Vegeta walked back towards him. Before he passed him, Frieza grabbed Vegeta's arm. He held out a hose. "Spray her until I tell you to stop."

Bulma started screaming as soon as the water touched her raw back. It was searing hot and only added to the pain she was already feeling. She lost track of how long Vegeta had been spraying her but it felt like an eternity. When it finally stopped, she found she could no longer support herself with her legs. She heard footsteps coming up from behind her. Frieza's tail wrapped around her neck and turned her head to face him. Bulma slowly opened her eyes.

"Perhaps now you will be a good girl," he said quietly. His tail released her. She heard Frieza bark some orders at someone else. By the time she was freed, Bulma had passed out.

* * *

_Ten hours_, Kinomi thought as she looked down at the regeneration tank's control panel. Bulma was inside, suspended in a green fluid that was tinged with red from her open wounds. _Why did you take my place, Blue? You knew you couldn't handle that_. She walked around the machine to look at Bulma's back. The blood had been cleaned somewhat from her and now Kinomi could make out the different lashes. It was hard to believe her skin had once been pristine and without a single blemish.

"Should you be in here?"

"It is my job to watch over her, is it not? I believe I was just punished for not doing so," Kinomi bit out. She turned to face her older brother. "Why are you in here? To see your handiwork?"

Vegeta narrowed his eyes at what his sister was implying. "You should be thankful it is not you who is in there."

"I would've survived that lashing just fine! She is not as strong as us! She's barely alive thanks to you!"

"You're speaking nonsense. She is the one who threw herself in front of you." Vegeta sounded detached, but he was having a hard time keeping the concern from his face when he saw what he'd done to Kinomi's. There was a large bruise where he had struck her. "I followed orders. That seems to be an incredibly foreign concept to you. Perhaps you should focus your anger into doing your job for once."

Kinomi's eyes widened and she lashed out. She punched her brother so hard that he actually stumbled back a few feet. She inwardly smirked when she saw that she had drawn blood. Her satisfaction gave way to more anger quickly, though. "_Follow orders_, you say? That's all you do! You talk about how much you hate Frieza and would give anything to destroy him but all you do is kiss his ass! You're no better than Zarbon and Dodoria! This was _wrong_, Vegeta! Even for killers like us this was low! All you had to do was put the damn whip down!"

Vegeta most certainly did not appreciate being likened to Zarbon and Dodoria. He was on his sister faster than she could take a breath. He held her against the wall by her neck. "You really believe it is that easy? You think I can just disobey whenever I very well please, don't you? You see what happened to the woman? It is a prime example of what I have been doing to save your ass from Frieza's wrath for years. Who do you think got punished for all those times you fucked up while on a mission? It's never crossed your mind why Frieza seemingly lets you get away with murder? He doesn't, Kinomi. I'm the one who takes the punishment. Not you. Not Nappa. Not Kakarrot. It's me. It's _**ALWAYS**_ been me." Vegeta released her and turned his back on her. He left the room without giving Kinomi another glance.


	8. 8: Ice Cold

**Destiny**

**Chapter 8: Ice Cold**

* * *

Chichi was not happy hearing a knock at the door of the Saiyan house. It was very late in the night. She'd just finished cleaning up after the men when the knock came. Frowning, she made her way to the door and opened it. It did not take her long to recognize what she was looking at. "I don't usually allow concubines in here. The guys do that kind of stuff at the fortress."

The woman standing before Chichi removed the hood to her cloak. A head full of blonde hair appeared and eyes that almost glowed in the dim light narrowed at Chichi. "I'm not here to pleasure anyone. I'm here to see the prince."

"Vegeta doesn't do concubines. Never has and probably never will. Good night." Chichi started to close the door but the woman's hand stopped it. She was surprisingly strong to hold off Chichi. "Listen, I don't know who..."

"Let her in," Vegeta called from behind her. Chichi glared back at him. She begrudgingly opened the door wider to let the woman in. She did not spare Chichi another glance and headed to where she heard Vegeta's voice.

He waited in the shadowed area of the foyer. The woman, known only as _Yellow_, turned and looked pointedly at Chichi. "Is there somewhere more private we can talk?" she asked.

"She knows. It's impossible to keep anything from her. Follow me, both of you." Vegeta turned and headed towards his room. The blonde followed him while Chichi grumbled under her breath but said nothing.

In Vegeta's room, the blonde watched as Vegeta took a seat on his bed, arms folded and scowl in place. Chichi sat in a chair and watched the two warily. The blonde stayed standing. "My real name is Eighteen. So you don't have to call me _Yellow_ anymore."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Eighteen? What kind of name is _Eighteen_?"

She narrowed her eyes. "I'll tell you in a moment. You can call me Juu. I'm from a planet that was only recently destroyed. Unlike your planet, Frieza did not fear my people. However, he did fear our technology. He enslaved our most prized scientists, my father being one of them. There's a reason my name is a number."

"Oh? What's that reason?"

"My people were called humans. I am an artificial human; an android," Juu said.

Chichi appeared interested now. She looked over Juu. "You're a machine?"

"How can I explain this sufficiently?" Juu appeared thoughtful for a moment. "I'm actually about three-fourths human. Certain parts of my body are artificial. I'm more or less an _enhanced_ human. I'm stronger, faster, and more resilient. My father made nineteen of us. Only my brother and I got away. If any of my siblings are still alive somewhere, I don't know."

Vegeta nodded, not looking away from Juu. "Why did you come to this particular planet? When I told you to would relocate to somewhere inside the empire I did not think you would come to Frieza's home base."

"What better place is there? I believe you said that there is no better place than right under his nose. My ladies are simply a guise for my network of spies. How do you think I know so much? You can always count on those who want power to want one thing," Juu said.

Chichi snorted. "Sex."

Juu looked over at her and nodded. "Precisely. They want sex and they want the best the galaxy has to offer."

Vegeta had to admit that it was a pretty ingenious plan. He could tell from his comrades that they enjoyed the fairer sex from time to time. He knew for a fact that Raditz had loose lips and would ramble on about practically anything if he was drunk enough. He would give the woman he was with at the moment an entire rundown of his day without even thinking.

"How many ladies do you keep?" Chichi asked, breaking the silence that had taken over the room.

"I have a decent-sized network in places around the galaxy. I brought my five best to entertain here for the time being. I'm sure you'll meet them soon. There is a lot more than meets the eye to them. Outside of my courtesan service, there is an extensive network that my brother leads. I do the reconnaissance. He fights the battles and places false trails. His job is to keep Frieza guessing."

"It all sounds like a decent plan. But, how are you going to eventually pull this all together in order to take Frieza down? Eventually, we will have to reveal ourselves and stage a revolution in earnest," Chichi said.

Vegeta closed his eyes and nodded. "That time will come. But we need a solid foundation before anything can happen. We have to be absolutely sure we can win or it will be all for naught. I don't want to instigate anything until we are ready."

Juu nodded as she folded her arms. "Understandable. I'd never want to risk exposing us unless we're ready." She looked over at Chichi. "I trust this will remain between us?"

Chichi shrugged. "I've kept Vegeta's secret this long."

"Very well." Juu turned to leave. Before she got to the door, she glanced back at Vegeta. "What about that girl you told me about? The one that works for Frieza?"

Vegeta's eyes opened. He had been trying desperately not to think of Bulma. "As of right now, she is of no danger to us. She is no more loyal to Frieza than we are."

Juu's eyes narrowed a bit. "And... you believe her?"

Chichi could practically feel Vegeta's uneasiness at the mention of Bulma. When they left the fortress after Frieza's grotesque punishment on Bulma, Vegeta had opted to check on Kinomi. Chichi had monitored their energy through her scouter while their conversation was going on. First Kinomi's rose and then Vegeta's practically exploded. She was sure it did not go unnoticed by the others. When Vegeta returned, he said nothing and holed himself up inside his room all day. Knowing Kinomi and her emotional outbursts, she probably said something that really put Vegeta on edge.

"She is not a concern. If anything, she will be more likely to help us than be a detriment to our cause," Chichi said finally. Juu nodded slowly before turning and leaving. Chichi looked back over at Vegeta. "What did she say?"

He knew she was referring to Kinomi. "It doesn't matter. She'll never say it again."

* * *

Returning to the conscious plane took more effort than Bulma realized. By the time she finally got her eyes to open, she was already exhausted. Although it was day, the drapes over her terrace doors were drawn and the room held a blue tint to it. Underneath the heavy comforter on her bed, Bulma flexed her fingers. She expected to be stiff after healing. While the healing chemicals inside the tanks did their job, they also were harsh on Bulma's body. She sighed as she pulled herself into a sitting position.

"It's about time you woke up," Kinomi said from her spot across the room.

Bulma had not noticed her bodyguard's presence so when Kinomi spoke, she nearly jumped out of her covers. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw Kinomi lounging on one of the sofas in Bulma's bedroom. Bulma hugged the covers around her, suddenly conscious of being nude. "How long have I been out?"

"You were in the tank for ten hours. Then you were brought back here and you've been asleep ever since. That maid of yours is gone. She said something about helping Frieza with something. I suppose she's helping with the arrival of... Blue?" Kinomi stopped as she noticed Bulma squeezing her eyes closed. "Blue, what's wrong?"

"He's here," Bulma whispered. She could tell. She glanced back up at Kinomi. The bodyguard nodded. Bulma fisted her hands in the comforter and took a few deep breaths. "I'm not leaving these quarters. We'll take all our meals here until they are gone. I don't want to leave this room."

Kinomi raised an eyebrow. "If that's what you want." She watched Bulma nod fervently. The two lapsed into silence. Kinomi looked away from Bulma and sighed. "Blue?"

"Yeah?"

"Um," Kinomi started as she stood. She walked over to the bed and sat down on it. "If you ever do what you did again, I will kill you myself," she said harshly.

Bulma's eyes widened and she blinked a few times. Then she smiled and giggled a bit. "Sorry for making you worry." Then she remembered Vegeta and her face grew serious. "How's your brother? Vegeta?"

Kinomi's face darkened. "Not happy with me."

"Why wouldn't he be happy with you? You didn't do anything wrong. It's my fault you were even put in that position." Bulma watched Kinomi avert her eyes in what looked like shame.

"I said some... insensitive things to him." The Saiyan princess shook her head and cracked a smirk. "Knowing Vegeta, he's probably forgotten about it by now. Doesn't make me feel any less horrible though. He made me feel like a bit of a jackass."

Bulma nodded. She had a feeling she'd done the same thing once to Vegeta. She glanced around the room before finally deciding to get out of the bed. Her joints ached in protest, but Bulma still worked the kinks out of them as she walked around the room to get dressed. Just as she was pulling a tunic over her head, Rika burst into the room.

Rika looked Bulma and Kinomi over. She frowned slightly. "Why are you not dressed, Miss Bulma? Miss Kinomi, you should be dressed as well! The dinner is in ten minutes! Lord Frieza expects both of you to be there."

"Well tell him that Bulma is under the weather. She just woke up and she is still very sore from her recent healing session. Tell him that," Kinomi responded dismissively.

The maid was not having any of that. "Perhaps you have forgotten that Lord Frieza's word is law. You cannot just decide that you do not want to heed his words. It will mean trouble for all three of us. Miss, I implore you. You must come to this dinner," Rika pleaded.

Bulma frowned. She turned her head towards the dress that hung in the closet just past Kinomi. She knew that if she refused Frieza's request that Rika would most likely be punished. While she was not necessarily fond of Rika, she did not want to see another person punished because of her selfish actions. Sighing, Bulma walked into the closet.

Kinomi saw the despondent expression on Bulma's face as she disappeared into her closet. The Saiyan glared at Rika. The maid scurried off to dress herself. _This night is not going to end well at all_, she thought.

* * *

Juu looked around at her top girls. Frieza had invited her and said she could bring some of her best along as entertainment for his father, brother, and their right hands. Naturally, she chose the five strongest of her ladies: Mai, Ranfan, Lunch, Zangya, and Hasky. Dressed to impress and seduce, they walked towards the hall where the feast would be taking place.

"Any specific things we're supposed to be doing?" Zangya, a woman with dark teal skin and bright orange hair, asked. While she was one of the more exotic ladies, she was also only second in strength to Juu.

"Yeah. Are we assigned different guys or what?" Hasky, a blonde with bushy short hair, inquired as well.

Juu rolled her eyes. "I would like you to try and get close with Cooler, Zangya. As for the rest of you, pick an asshole and hover around them. Listen to their idle banter and try to take everything in. I'll be observing the event from afar," she said as they came to the doors of the hall. She halted and faced her girls. "Lunch, please try to stay away from anything that will make you sneeze. I need _sweet_, _innocent_ Lunch today; not _lascivious_, _murderous_ Lunch."

Violet-haired Lunch blinked a few times. Then as if remembering something, she raised a finger and giggled. "Ok! I remember now! I gotcha!" she said happily as her boss rolled her eyes.

"All right ladies." Juu faced them as they stopped right at the hall's doors. "As they used to say on my planet, it's show time."

* * *

"Why do we have to go to this? We don't work for Cold or Cooler," Turles complained.

"Well, we are some of the highest-ranking officers in Frieza's army. That could be why he requested us to come to this event." Kakarrot looked around them. He noticed they were short one person. "Where's Vegeta?"

Chichi shrugged. "Who knows? He'll be at this stupid event. I do wonder about Kinomi, though. If Bulma isn't up to coming then chances are that she won't either. I don't think Frieza would drag her out to something like this if she isn't feeling better."

"You grossly overestimate Frieza's capacity for anyone's feelings but his own," Raditz said. Chichi turned her head to glare at him. "What? I just told the truth." He shrugged his shoulders. Chichi rolled her eyes and entered the hall.

There were several allies of Frieza milling about the area. Some were being entertained by some of the concubines that had been invited. Chichi spotted Juu on the far wall. She was talking with two relatively important allies of Frieza. The last time Chichi saw Juu, she had been completely covered from head to toe. Now, Juu wore something that was little more than a floor-length, sleeveless piece of sheer adorned with glitter. Nothing was left to the imagination; especially where she was touching the other man with her right hand.

Another roll of her eyes was all the scene earned from Chichi as she headed to the area where the Saiyans would be enjoying the party from. She was not as acquainted with the debauchery involved in one of Frieza's _gatherings_ as the others were. Vegeta had only recently allowed her to attend a few.

"Let's hurry up and get settled. I don't want to remain here for too long. It makes my skin crawl," Chichi said. She heard Raditz and Nappa laugh a bit at her uneasiness and shoved both of them with her elbows.

* * *

Vegeta walked at an extremely leisurely pace towards the meeting hall. He had no desire to spend any more time than necessary at the meeting. What better way to do that than to be late for it? It also did not help that he felt strangely anxious about the entire affair. His angst was turning into nausea. As he passed the hall that led to the east wing of the fortress, he heard fussing. He immediately recognized one voice.

"Listen, Blue. If you keep acting like a frightened little brat, I'll be forced to smack some sense into you. Unless you tell me why you are so afraid of Cold, I'm inclined to believe that you're just being spoiled," Kinomi said.

Vegeta heard Bulma sigh. "It's shameful," she said quietly. "Let's just say that there's a special place in hell for people like him." The silence after her words let Vegeta know that she was serious. Vegeta narrowed his eyes and went ahead of the two girls.

When he entered the hall, he immediately caught sight of Cooler and Cold. Cold was just a more muscular, taller version of Frieza. Cooler was drinking and talking to a woman with orange hair and a sheer green outfit with glitter. He noticed Vegeta and raised his goblet in salutation, a smirk donning his face. Vegeta simply narrowed her eyes and looked away. He started to head to his kin when Juu came up to him.

"Good evening, Prince Vegeta," she said as she shimmied up to him. Vegeta glared at her for a moment. Juu smirked. "Frieza invited several other guests and requested my ladies for entertainment. As you can see, they're working."

Vegeta nodded and looked back towards the door. Kinomi and Bulma had still not come in. They should have been right behind him. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he glanced around the room. Finally noticing the other people in the room, Vegeta realized that he did not know many of them.

"They are allies of Cold and Cooler. Many of them came to see if they could also do business with Frieza. The Planet Trade Organization is looking into some expansion into farther reaches of the galaxy. My planet, for instance, was considered a _backwater planet_ by some. That should tell you how much ground they are starting to cover," Juu explained. She stepped up closer to Vegeta. A small chuckle escaped her lips when she noticed how Vegeta tensed slightly. "You're not used to being with a woman, are you?"

Trying to quell the heat in his face, Vegeta crossed his arms. "That's not it. I'm just not used to being so... open about it."

"You should be acting like you're enjoying yourself. So far, I've had the pleasure of being quite standoffish. I do not have the patience to be a concubine. Plus, I like to keep the illusion that I am nothing more than a feeble woman with an incredible body and sex appeal."

"If you were seen as anything more that could prove to be a problem."

"You are correct." Juu got closer, appearing as if she was whispering something to him. "So where is Frieza's princess?" she asked.

Hearing Bulma being referred to as such made Vegeta uncomfortable for reasons unknown to him. Juu seemed to be judging Bulma before they even met; much like how he did initially as well. "Wherever Kinomi is the woman is sure to follow," he responded.

The room hushed a bit when Bulma did make her entrance. Juu noticed Vegeta's pause in movement along with the small catch of his breath. She turned her head to look at the doorway. She too was taken aback by the breathtaking young woman standing there. Juu took note of how morose Bulma appeared. It was as if the girl would rather all eyes not be on her.

* * *

Bulma walked hurriedly to her seat with Kinomi following closely behind. She walked past Frieza, Cold, and Cooler without sparing them a glance. When she reached her seat, she sat down in a huff and stared down at her hands. She jumped when Kinomi sat down beside her. When she realized it was only her bodyguard, Bulma relaxed somewhat.

"Blue, try to relax. You don't have to stay here for too long," Kinomi said quietly. Bulma nodded and took a deep breath.

_Just relax. Focus on something else_, Bulma told herself. She looked up and around the room. Frieza's gatherings were nothing new to her. Frieza had practically forced her to attend them since she first came to him. She looked down at the table in front of her and reached for her goblet of wine. _I'm going to need it if I'm going to relax_.

* * *

Cold watched Bulma as she drank and talked quietly with her bodyguard. Said bodyguard looked quite young. He nudged his youngest son. "Frieza, who is that little one with your witch?"

Frieza rolled his eyes. "Bulma is not a _witch_, Father. And that's the monkey prince's younger sister. I can't ever really remember what her name is. Ki-something. Why do you ask?"

"She's adorable."

"Adorable? The little one is many things but _adorable_ is not a way I would choose to describe her. She'd sooner dismember you than smile for you." Frieza noticed the way his father stared at Kinomi and narrowed his eyes. "I won't have you touching her. I've got Vegeta under my control and I'd rather not have him doing stupid things because you defiled his sister."

"Forget about Father and his fetishes." Cooler glanced over at his brother. "Have you even considered what that old woman told you all those years ago?"

"What are you talking about?"

"That old woman on Aoi, the planet you stole the girl from." Cooler gazed at Bulma for a moment. "She has grown to be quite a pretty young thing. You haven't promised her to anyone, have you?"

Frieza shook his head. An old woman had indeed said something to Frieza before he left Aoi with Bulma. Frieza did not think much of it then and he still did not think much of it now. "Something about finding a match or some such nonsense. I have little interest in _prophecies_ from dead races. If their prophecies had any truth to them, don't you think they would still be alive?"

Cooler nodded, still looking at Bulma. He picked a small round fruit from a bowl in front of him. "I suppose you are right, brother. However, prophecies don't guarantee the survival of the race; just of the prophesied. Wasn't there also a prophecy of some sort regarding the Saiyans?"

"Yes, but I took care of that problem rather efficiently."

"Yet you kept the most powerful of them alive," Cooler retorted quickly. Frieza gave his brother a scathing glare. Cooler was still looking at Bulma, watching her every move. "All I'm saying is you left the one the prophecy could possibly be talking about alive. What sense did that make?"

"It was a business venture and it has served me well for years. The same with Bulma. Neither of those two poses any sort of threat to me or anyone under my employ."

"Your banter annoys me, boys," Cold interrupted. "I thought business was supposed to be saved for later."

Frieza narrowed his eyes at Cooler once more before facing his father. "Yes. We'll keep business out of this affair for now."

"Great. Now about that little Saiyan..."

* * *

Cooler's staring did not go unnoticed by Vegeta. He immediately noticed the fascination Cooler and Cold had with both his sister and Bulma. He'd never seen the lavender-haired girl so flustered in the short time he'd known her. She seemed so unafraid of him and even Frieza, yet she cowered under the eyes of Frieza's kin. It amazed Vegeta yet it also made him angry. _She should never cower like that. She isn't a coward_.

"So that's her. I must say that she is quite exotic-looking. I can see why she would appeal to so many. I take it Frieza does not use her as such," Juu's voice interrupted Vegeta's thoughts. She watched him nod slowly. "You say she is of no danger to us. She will not cause us trouble?"

"None that I will not be aware of first. Kinomi has gained her trust." Vegeta tore his eyes away from Bulma and Kinomi to look at Juu. "She is far more dangerous than she lets on."

Juu studied Vegeta's face for a moment before smirking sensually again. "Most women are, Prince Vegeta. I hope we will talk again." She stood up and sauntered away from him to another _customer_. Vegeta stared after her for a moment before looking over at Kinomi and Buma again. His sister briefly met his eyes. He was still rather ticked with her so he looked away quickly.

* * *

Kinomi sighed as Vegeta averted his eyes. As stubborn as she was, Vegeta could be even more stubborn. She looked away from her brother to see someone approaching them. Purple and fish-faced, Kinomi knew exactly who he was. "Cui."

Cui gave Kinomi and Bulma a wide grin before he came to stop in front of them. "Good evening, little one."

"Don't call me that. I get enough of it from Frieza. I don't need it from a guppy like you." Kinomi rolled her eyes and looked away from him. Cui's grin dropped but he did not go away. Kinomi noticed him lingering and raised an eyebrow. "Can I help you with something?"

"Not yet, princess. Not yet." Cui turned and walked away.

Bulma watched him go. Something about his words did not sit well with her. She continued to stare after the purple alien with curious eyes, but she said nothing of her concerns to Kinomi. Instead, she looked towards the entrance to the hall to see the door fly open. It happened so abruptly that it interrupted the entire gathering.

Artificial smoke seeped through the wide doors. As the room fogged up, shadows filtered in and out of the smoke emerged four warriors in weird poses. Bulma and Kinomi watched in stunned silence at the ridiculous display before them. A fifth warrior came through the triangle the other four created with their arms. He was purple, horned, and he looked smug about something.

* * *

"Ginyu," Vegeta growled low in his throat.

Turles snorted. "They still look like a bunch of fucking idiots. Is a prerequisite for joining that group the ability to make yourself look like a total jackass?" He stuffed a piece of bread into his mouth and took a drink of his wine. "There isn't enough money or women in the galaxy to make me want to join those idiots."

"I hear you. What's the purpose of all that posing? Hell, we barely introduce ourselves before we fight someone." Raditz laughed as he too took a swig of his wine.

Kakarrot appeared thoughtful for a moment as he watched the members of the Ginyu Force put on a small performance. "I always introduce myself."

"That's because you're a moron, Kakarrot," Turles said, nudging his twin roughly.

"I'm not a moron!" Kakarrot snatched a piece of bread from his twin. "I think introductions are necessary. What do you think, Chichi?"

Everyone except Vegeta looked at Chichi, though he lent his ear to hear what she had to say. Chichi sipped her wine slowly. She looked towards group of soldiers near the entrance. "I always introduce myself before a one on one fight. Wouldn't you want the person you're about to kill to want to know your name?"

"So they can haunt me from the afterlife? I'll take my chances and remain _Nameless Saiyan_." Turles and Raditz slapped five while Kakarrot nodded thoughtfully. "What about you, Vegeta?" Turles asked.

Their leader shrugged. "They should already know my name."

* * *

"Who are they?" Bulma whispered to Kinomi as the group of five went over to meet with Frieza and the others.

Kinomi stuffed a few pieces of fruit in her mouth. "The Ginyu Force. They're like Frieza's personal hit squad. I'm surprised you've never heard of them, Blue," she answered.

"I've heard of them. I've just never seen them to put faces to the name. I wonder if we should find it peculiar that they're here." Bulma looked them over. Compared to all the different species in the gallery that she'd seen, the Ginyu Force was definitely nothing to look twice at. The only one that mildly struck her as interesting was the short, fat green one with four eyes. At least Bulma thought they were four eyes.

"Bulma," Frieza called.

Bulma stiffened visibly. She looked up at them and saw Frieza beckoning over to her with his index finger. Next to her, Kinomi stood up. Bulma followed her lead and eventually made her way to Frieza, trembling form and all. "Yes?" she managed to say without her voice cracking.

Frieza did not answer Bulma right away. Instead, he focused on Kinomi. She was just wearing a red version of her usual bodysuit without her armor on. "Little one, why don't you go keep Captain Ginyu company while Bulma talks with us," he said. Kinomi narrowed her eyes but said nothing. She looked over to where Ginyu was lounging. He appeared to already be waiting for her. Inwardly cringing, Kinomi left Bulma's side.

_Relax, Blue. They can sense your fear. Hold your head up_, Kinomi said. Bulma nodded in a subtle way and took a deep breath before gazing back at Frieza.

"You called me. What do you want?" Bulma inquired tersely.

Cold feigned shock at her curtness. "I haven't seen you in years and this is the greeting I get? I'm hurt, Bulma," he said.

Bulma did not waste her energy looking in his direction. Instead she kept her eyes trained on Frieza. "What?"

It was not Frieza who responded to her but instead Cold again. "I feel like taking a walk. Why don't you join me?" He stood up. He was so much taller than both Frieza and Cooler but somehow less intimidating. He looked no less sinister and dark, though.

"Since my bodyguard is otherwise occupied, I don't think it is a good idea for me to go where I will not be within her sight." Bulma looked pointedly at Frieza. "She wouldn't be doing her job, would she?"

Frieza caught her words' meaning and smiled. "A valid point you do draw, Bulma. However, I doubt Father will bring any harm to your person. He knows the value you hold to all of us. Why would he hurt you?"

"Perhaps that is a question best asked to him, Frieza."

Cold let out a loud laugh, making all involved in the current conversation look at him. "You've grown into such a spitfire, Bulma. There's such a fierce spirit in you. Last time we met I could barely pull a scream from you let alone a coherent sentence. That Frieza hasn't ripped out your tongue yet speaks to your value to him."

Bulma stared blandly at Cold, her fear of the man gone for the moment. "Trust me. My value has been diminished greatly from what it once was."

Both Frieza and Cooler narrowed their eyes while Cold smirked. Frieza sighed and leaned forward a bit, looking up at Bulma. "Well do me a favor and keep Father entertained. He doesn't bite," he said. Cold took Bulma's right hand. Frieza waved as Cold pulled Bulma out of the room.

Cooler watched them leave with the one known as Zangya still sitting beside him. "Are you entirely sure that's a good idea?"

Frieza reached for his own goblet of wine. "She never did receive her punishment for trying to cut and run on me."

* * *

15 minutes later, Vegeta inhaled so sharply that he choked on his wine. Everyone sitting with him looked his direction. After a few solid hits to his chest, Vegeta righted himself and glared back at the others.

"Geez, Vegeta. Nappa's jokes are awful but they're not _that_ bad," Turles joked. The rest of the Saiyans laughed lightheartedly and kept eating. Only Chichi noticed Vegeta's slightly troubled look. He gave her a quick look before rising from his seat and leaving the room.

_What is going on with him_? Chichi frowned as she watched his retreating form disappear through the doors.

* * *

Kinomi looked up from listening to Ginyu's tales about his conquests. She noticed the familiar head of hair that stuck out like a sore thumb was nowhere in sight. Glancing over to Frieza, she noticed that Cooler was missing as well. Ignoring Ginyu's calls for her, she stood up and began marching towards Frieza's seat. She was halfway there when a broad chest stopped in front of her. Kinomi had to stop immediately to keep from falling into the person.

"And just where do you think you're going?" It was Raditz. He was guzzling another goblet of wine. When he was done, he looked down at Kinomi. "You're not gonna start any trouble are you?"

The princess crossed her arms. "I won't if you save me from that asshole," she said quietly, subtly gesturing to Ginyu behind her. The captain had already moved on to one of Juu's girls.

Raditz smirked. "You got it, princess."

"Where's Vegeta? I never even noticed him leave." The small one glanced around nervously for her eldest brother. All she saw was Tarble nervously receiving attention from a blonde woman. She rolled her eyes and held in a giggle. Her twin was so gloriously awkward around beautiful women.

"Went somewhere. Didn't say where. He's clearly in one of his _moods_. You know how he gets. Where'd the purple girl go?"

"It looks like Frieza sent her off with Cold." Kinomi tapped her foot in irritation as she looked past Raditz's body towards Frieza and Cooler. "Why he would send her off with that piece of shit is beyond me."

Raditz snickered. "Don't tell me you're worried about the girl. You never worry about anything."

Kinomi frowned and looked away from Raditz. "She's my charge. I'm supposed to protect her."

* * *

Vegeta's sensitive hearing picked up the furious splashing of water. He continued his unhurried walk towards the small lake with the waterfall without making much noise. As he grew closer, he heard the faint sound of frantic mumbling. Before he stepped through the brush, he stopped short of stepping on a pile of blue. He immediately recognized it as the dress Bulma had been wearing. Vegeta could see the condition the dress was in and left it on the ground. When he stepped through the brush, he paused momentarily.

_What the hell is she doing_?

Bulma was waist deep in the water with her back to him. She was furiously rubbing at the skin on her arms. It was as if some unseen grime was on her. She was still mumbling incoherently. Vegeta saw the redness of her usually pale skin. She was starting to make her skin raw and eventually she would scrape herself. Vegeta took a step forward without looking and snapped a branch.

The speed in which Bulma turned her head should have snapped her neck. By pure instinct did Vegeta dodge whatever it was she sent at him with her frenzied gaze. Bulma blinked a few times as she watched a large boulder split in half. Vegeta's form came into her line of sight. She could barely believe she lost control like that. "Vegeta..."

"Woman, what the hell are you doing out here alone like this?" Vegeta quickly stood up straight. He glanced at her handiwork with the rock. If he really thought about it, she probably could have bifurcated him. If not, then he would be sporting a large gash right up his middle. He glanced back at her. "Answer me." She was quivering. Vegeta could not tell if it was out of fright or just nervousness.

"I... I'm so dirty. I had to take a bath." Her eyes trailed away from him and down into the water.

"You have a room indoors for that, woman." Vegeta knew he should not care, but he did. It was why he followed her energy outside. It did not dawn on him until that moment that he could no longer feel Cold. "What happened?"

Bulma faced him completely. Luckily for Vegeta, her long hair covered most of her bosom. Vegeta quickly averted his eyes to something other than her anyway. Sighing, he unclipped the cape from his armor and walked towards the bank of the lake. He held out the cape and gestured for her to get out of the water. It took a moment for Bulma to understand what he wanted her to do, but she slowly did it eventually. Vegeta wrapped it around her and made her face him. She was staring down at her feet.

"I think..." Her voice was hoarse. She closed her eyes. The past 30 minutes' events flooded through her mind and she shook her head. "I think I may have done something wrong. I can't really remember too much after I... started screaming."

_Screaming? Why would she be screaming_? Vegeta pondered.

"You shouldn't have left the fortress. What happens if Cold goes back to Frieza and tells him you ran? You want to get..."

The flood gates seemed to open then. "I told him to stay away from me; to keep his hands to himself! He wouldn't listen! He grabbed me and touched me! All I kept thinking is that _this cannot happen again! I won't allow it to!_ That's all I kept thinking. I... I..." Bulma shut her eyes again. "I pushed him back. I don't know how but I did. It took the wind out of me. His body went through the wall..." Bulma trailed off again and opened her eyes.

Vegeta could believe everything he was hearing except the part about Bulma pushing Cold through a wall. He could believe that Cold was that much of a bastard as to force himself on a woman. Frieza had to learn his habits from somewhere. "You ran after that?"

Bulma shook her head and began biting her fingernails. "He came back after me and he was mad. Very, very mad." Bulma held out her left arm. Vegeta could see the bruises shaped like handprints. He heard her laugh derisively. "I'm shocked he didn't snap my arm in half."

"That still doesn't explain..."

"I pulled away," she cut him off. "I pulled away again. I don't know how but I did. He grabbed me with his tail." For the first time, Vegeta noticed the dark marks around Bulma's neck and collarbone. "I couldn't breathe but I could see him. All I could think about was how much I wanted to crush his heart."

"So I take it you did."

Bulma shrugged. "I felt his tail loosening until he dropped me on the ground and I broke eye contact. He fell and I got to my feet. I ran all the way..." The adrenaline rush seemed to finally be wearing off for Bulma. She swayed a bit. "I just felt so filthy. Now I'm cold."

She passed out and Vegeta caught her deftly with one arm. He sighed and picked her up properly before taking off to the sky. _This woman... She's a magnet for danger_.


	9. 9: The One

**Destiny**

**Chapter 9: The One**

* * *

Frieza and Cooler stared impassively at their father's cold corpse. He'd been found by a wayward couple looking for a place to copulate in private. The only explanation for Cold's death was that he had suffered a heart attack of some sort. More tests were being taken in order to find out if that was indeed the case.

"Where was that little witch of yours? Wasn't she supposed to be with Father?" Cooler asked, breaking the silence between the brothers.

The overlord bristled at the mention of Bulma. "She has a penchant for running off. No ships have left the planet so she's still within the area somewhere. It's just a matter of finding her. You believe she had something to do with this?"

"Probably not _directly_, but she did leave him to die. You will let something like this go unpunished?" Cooler slyly looked at Frieza and crossed his arms.

"Punish her? For what?" Frieza turned away from his brother with a snort. "We've both wanted this old man dead for quite some time. That someone else did the dirty work without us instigating it just makes it better."

"What you say is true. However, someone needs to take the fall. To our subordinates, it appeared that we revered our father. They can't know that we didn't give a rat's ass about him. That'll just make them think of internal discord. Internal discord leads to uprisings. Uprisings lead to revolutions. Revolutions lead to the fall of empires."

Frieza considered his brother's words. Cooler was right. Someone would have to take the fall for this. He could not just blame anyone, though. A regular soldier would not be realistic enough. Others would never believe a regular soldier could take down someone as powerful as Cold. Someone well-known would have to do. _Well-known but expendable_.

The overlord's musings were interrupted by a doctor entering the room. "Lord Frieza, we have news of Lord Cold's autopsy. We discovered that in addition to the heart attack, Lord Cold was poisoned. Whether the poison had an impact on him remains to be seen," the doctor said.

"And why are you telling me this without any definitive evidence?" Frieza asked without turning around. He could hear the doctor fumbling with words to say. Sighing, Frieza whirled around and glared at the small, red-faced alien. "Get out, imbecile! Come talk to me when you have better evidence!"

"Yes, Lord Frieza!" The doctor turned and ran out of the room, leaving the two brothers in silence.

Cooler chuckled softly. "Well, I suppose you should get to working on finding a stooge to take the fall for this. I daresay news of the heart attack should be kept under wraps. Run with the poisoning."

"I don't need you to tell me how to run my business," Frieza snapped. Cooler shook his head and walked out of the room.

* * *

He had no idea why he brought her to his home. It was stupid and he had not realized it until she was already curled up under the sheets on his bed. Vegeta sat in a chair across from his bed, watching Bulma sleep. It felt strange for him to just sit there and watch her. Vegeta rarely had women entertain him and when he did it was usually because the others forced him into it somehow. Women were a distraction. Kinomi was proof enough of that and she was simply his sister.

So why did he continue to care for this woman's well-being? She was no one to him. If anything she was detrimental to his cause. Being in her presence would lead to nothing but trouble. So why did he seek her out? He could not concentrate unless she was near. Ironically, with her just lying in front of him, it was the most focused he'd been in weeks. Of course, he was focusing only on her at the moment.

Vegeta stood and moved towards his bed. He kneeled down at the edge, right where Bulma's head was. She appeared so peaceful compared to the emotional mess she was at the lake. Vegeta leaned in closer. He slowly and tentatively moved some of Bulma's hair in order to see her face more clearly. Vegeta's breath caught as she responded to his touch by turning her head, allowing him to cup her cheek. The contact startled Vegeta and he immediately retracted his hand.

_What the hell am I doing? That was fucking stupid! What is wrong with me_? Questions ran through his mind as he berated himself. He looked back in Bulma's direction and noticed a strange look on her face. She was pouting. Vegeta raised an eyebrow and leaned forward again. Bulma seemed to move closer to him, as if she was subconsciously drawn to him. Vegeta slid his hand from her chin to her small neck. The marks from Cold's hold on her had darkened from the red irritated skin he saw at the lake to purplish bruises.

"I could kill you so easily. Just one swift movement and I'll be rid of you and all these... sensations you induce in me," Vegeta whispered softly into her hair. He closed his eyes as he inhaled her scent. Even though she had been in the water, she still smelled of some sort of tangy fruit. "You... are a troublesome... frustrating woman..." He trailed off slowly.

* * *

_Bulma tried to catch her breath as she stared at the destroyed wall before her. She was confused. Just a moment ago, Cold had his disgusting paws around her and now he was laying 20 feet away in a pile of rubble. Bulma was not so bold as to believe that even with her mental power she could toss someone like Cold through a wall. She looked down at her hands. They held a faint blue glow that disappeared almost as quickly as Bulma noticed it._

_ A rumbling noise followed by a roar of anger jolted Bulma from her thoughts and back into action. She turned to run in the opposite direction. Before she got too far, a cold hand grabbed hold of her arm. Bulma could hear Cold cursing at her, but none of it came in coherently. She fought to get out of his grasp. Just as she did before, she pushed with all the strength she had in her body._

_ As Cold released her with his hand, something else snatched Bulma up by her neck. She belatedly realized that it was his tail. Cold was now lifting her off her feet by it and smirking as he walked up towards her._

_ "You're much feistier than I remember you being. I enjoy the chase just as much as anyone else." Cold brought her closer with his tail. "You should feel honored that I would even look twice at you. My tastes are usually much... younger. However, I'll make an exception just for..."_

_ Bulma barely noticed Cold's sharp intake of breath. She stared directly at him, her gaze never wavering and her eyes unblinking. His tail's grip on her loosened and she dropped to the ground. Cold stumbled back, clutching his chest. Bulma stared him down, unrelenting in her gaze._

_ "Your... Your... Your eyes..." Cold slumped down on the floor._

_ Finally, she blinked._

* * *

Bulma's eyes snapped open. The blurriness cleared and she immediately found out that she was not in her bed nor was she in her room. She was squeezing something under the big sheets that covered her. She heard noise in front of her and realized that she was not alone in this strange room. Slowly moving the covers down, she peered down to see the unmistakable hair of Vegeta. Bulma began to sit up properly but stopped when she noticed that Vegeta was in nothing but a towel.

_By the gods, that was what was under his shirt_? Bulma could not help but ogle the well-defined muscles of Vegeta's back. Even with the scars he looked as though he was carved from the finest marble. She had been in the vicinity of attractive men before but they were usually only examples of how beauty is only skin deep. She did not know Vegeta well enough to say he was not one of the many who were like that. However, there was no law against looking. So she did.

Vegeta snorted. "I know you're awake, woman," he said without turning.

Bulma pulled the covers back up to her chin. "And how would you have figured that out? Can you read my mind, too?" she joked.

"No." Vegeta turned and faced her. "My senses are superior to yours. The subtle change in your breathing pattern and the way your heart beats are what alerted me," he said.

"Wow, Vegeta. You can hear my heart beat from all the way over there? That's amazing."

"Not really," Vegeta said with a shrug. "Anyone can do it if trained to listen and look for the right things."

Bulma started to sit up. She quickly realized that she was again naked. _This keeps happening to me for some reason_, she thought with a sigh. She bunched the covers up around her and sat up with her back against the headboard.

"So..."

"So?" Vegeta crossed his arms.

Bulma remained silent for a moment more. Deciding that looking at Vegeta as he stood there in barely anything at all would hinder her thought process, she took to taking in her surroundings. "You brought me to your home. Why?"

"Would you have preferred I drop you off in your room where someone would be able to find you once they discovered the mess you made of Cold?" Vegeta watched Bulma cross her arms and pout. "I didn't think so. You can go back soon. I'm pretty sure Frieza is out looking for you as we speak."

"I don't doubt that," Bulma muttered.

Just as Vegeta turned around to look for some clothing, the door to his room opened wide. Startled, Bulma pulled the covers over her more securely. Vegeta just turned his head to whoever had the gall to enter his quarters without announcing themselves. Unsurprisingly, it was Chichi.

Chichi looked at Bulma and then at Vegeta. She made the same movements with her eyes at least three more times before resting her gaze on Vegeta. "Just what the hell is going on here?"

"It isn't what it looks like, Chichi!" Bulma said quickly. She could only imagine what type of thoughts the other woman was thinking as Chichi crossed her arms over her chest. "It really isn't."

"And just what am I supposed to think when I walk in on you two in this condition? There aren't a lot of options."

Vegeta scoffed. "You should be thinking about why you just barged into my room without permission." He pushed her back out of the room with one hand and slammed the door in Chichi's face with the other. Ignoring Chichi's cries and pounding on the door, Vegeta moved away from it to a dresser on the other side of the room.

Bulma snickered as she heard Chichi curse at Vegeta. "Why doesn't she just open the door again?"

"Because if she does she knows that I'll just go beat the shit out of Kakarrot," Vegeta said as he rummaged around in the dresser drawers.

"Beat up Kakarrot? Why would you do that?"

"I don't hit women who don't attack me first and I've never struck that harpy outside of sparring." Vegeta tossed a black jumpsuit at Bulma. "That's the only one-piece I've got."

Bulma looked down at the jumpsuit. It looked incredibly tiny. "Are you sure it'll even fit me? How did you even get in it?" She looked up from the garment to see Vegeta pulling out his own clothes. He walked a few paces away from her and dropped his towel. Bulma's eyes bulged and she immediately pulled the comforter over her head. "Vegeta!"

Vegeta looked over at Bulma as he began dressing himself. "What is your problem now, woman?" he asked as he pulled up his pants. He looked in her direction to see her still with the cover over her head. "Woman!"

"You just dropped your towel in front of me and I'm the one with the problem?" She peered over the top of the cover a bit to see if he was dressed.

"Obviously you were not so offended by it if you looked again," Vegeta retorted with a smirk.

"What the hell are you talking about? I did not look! I'm not a pervert!"

"Oh didn't you? I never said I was dressed. You still came out from underneath there. Perhaps the sight was not so displeasing to your beady little eyes." Vegeta had to fight from laughing at the shade of red Bulma turned. He could not tell if she was embarrassed or angry. If the vein throbbing on her temple was any indication, he'd go with the latter.

Bulma huffed and crossed her arms. "Wasn't much to look at," she mumbled. When she heard the indignant growl coming from Vegeta, she inwardly smirked. "Now turn around so I can get dressed." She turned her body to place her feet on the floor, still holding the comforter to her chest.

Vegeta noticed her reluctance to get out of the bed. "Woman, there isn't much of you left to my imagination anymore. Just get dressed."

"That's not the point, Vegeta. It's just... improper." She watched him shrug and turn to walk over to the closet in his room. Bulma took the opportunity to quickly get up. She picked up the jumpsuit and began shrugging it on. As she was pulling it up, Bulma noticed a scratch on her right side. She touched the mark gently. There was no pain. It looked as if her skin had merely been smudged away. Bulma stared at it for a long moment, trying to figure out what the mark was.

Vegeta walked back in the room from his closet. Bulma was standing with her back to him and she appeared to be entranced with something on her skin. Vegeta moved silently behind her and looked down at what she was examining. The mark was strange. Unlike the bruises on her arms and neck, it appeared to be blue. "Are you unfamiliar with that blemish?" he asked into her ear.

Bulma gasped at Vegeta's proximity to her. She had not even heard him move. "I've never seen it. I'm sure it's just another bruise." Straightening up, Bulma finished pulling the jumpsuit up. Despite initially looking like something only a toddler would be able to fit, the fabric seemed to conform to Bulma's shape and size. It was almost like wearing skin. "It's so lightweight."

"It's a special fabric that was perfected on my planet." Vegeta turned around and began fixing the sheets on his bed. He tossed her the cape he had draped her in at the lake. Bulma had still been holding on to it when he put her in the bed. "The fabric is made to fit anything. It can stretch to fit even our ultimate forms."

"Ultimate form? What's that?" Bulma squeezed the cape in her hand.

The prince looked back in her direction. "The form most Saiyans can fight at their maximum in. You're lucky if you never get to see it."

Bulma stared at him for a long moment before nodding. "I've heard my people also had something of an _ultimate_ form. My mother told me that it is very hard to achieve and even harder to control. Only one of the elders on my planet could do it, but she was very old."

Vegeta sat down on his bed and stared up at Bulma. "A transformation?" He watched Bulma shake her head and sit down beside him. "So just a higher state of being?"

"I am not sure." Bulma thought back to seeing the old elder and her power. "It's hard to remember. I only saw her once. She appeared as a being surrounded in a cloak of blue light. It was almost as if she was simply a specter. That version of her seemed young while her real body was old and frail. She was very, very old too."

"Sounds like you were pretty important on your planet."

Bulma shook her head again. "Not at all. My family was pretty average. The only thing that really set us apart was the fact that my mother was what we called an _Aurelian_. While most of the people on my planet had hair like mine, my mother's was very fair. She was considered exotic. I don't know why I was chosen by Frieza. We held no high social status like the kings and queen or even the elders."

Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest. "Exotic? Both you and your mother would be outcasts on my planet. Saiyans all have dark hair. Only the slaves from other planets were colored any different."

The two sat in silence for a few minutes more. Bulma clasped her hands together and exhaled loudly. "What about your parents? What were they like?"

The question surprised Vegeta. He did not usually talk so much and never about his family if he could help it. But Bulma's kind eyes held him in place and he felt compelled to answer. "I resemble my father a lot. The only thing that is probably different between us is our height. He also had a mustache. My mother..." Vegeta trailed off. "Kinomi looks like our mother the most."

"Then she must've been absolutely gorgeous."

* * *

Tarble towards Vegeta's room. He stopped a few feet from it when he noticed the three brothers and Chichi crowded around the door with their ears to it. Raditz noticed Tarble and put a finger to his lips. Tarble crossed his arms and shook his head. _If Vegeta knew they were eavesdropping he'd go ballistic_, he thought. Still, he was curious as to why they were listening in on Vegeta's conversation. He already knew that Bulma was in there with him, but why would they be talking? His curiosity got the better of him and he hovered over to the door and put his ear against it.

"Kakarrot, your elbow is in my back!" Turles whispered.

"Move over some! I can't hear!" Kakarrot retorted.

"Both of you be quiet before Vegeta hears us!" Raditz whispered to both of them.

* * *

Vegeta turned his head towards Bulma. "You talked about having a _chosen one_. You say you'll probably never find yours. Why? Your chosen can only be within your race?"

She started to reply but immediately realized that she had no idea how to answer that question. "I don't know. As far as I know, my planet was not densely populated. I always thought that there was high probability that you would cross paths with your chosen at some point, but not a lot of people did." Bulma looked up at the ceiling. "Maybe my _chosen_ isn't from my race."

This piqued Vegeta's interest. "How do you know when you find them?"

"Well, I'm not sure. My mother said it is different for everyone. Sometimes you never feel a thing and it's all on the other person's side. When she found hers, she felt the urge to see him; to be near him. She came to love him and some time after that I was born."

Vegeta hummed low in his throat. "Feelings… What kind of feelings would one get?"

"Oh I don't know. Probably feeling tingly. Or maybe like the wind was knocked out of them. I don't suppose one would feel pain. Maybe they'd feel empowered or at peace. Maybe they feel as though there's nothing to fear; that nothing can stop them." Bulma sighed a bit. "Maybe they feel what the other feels. Perhaps they share their emotions. I don't think I'll ever know." She fell silent as she looked down at her hands.

"_What is the meaning of this_?"

Both Bulma and Vegeta turned their heads toward the door when they heard Nappa's booming voice. Immediately following that there was a lot of shuffling and groaning heard. There were a few knocks against the door and grumbles about pain. Then Nappa opened the door. He looked at Vegeta and then Bulma.

"What is going on out there, Nappa?" Vegeta asked.

Nappa pointed at Bulma. "Every soldier within the walls of the fortress is scouring the grounds for you. Frieza's patience is definitely running out. He's called for all of us to assist in the search," he said.

Bulma got to her feet. "Well I suppose I should go let Frieza know I didn't run off before he starts killing people," she said.

"I'll take her back. The rest of you stay here." Vegeta got up and followed Bulma out of the room. He glared at the other Saiyans. The brothers were looking anywhere but the direction of their leader and Tarble was blushing. Chichi tried to appear nonchalant but kept giving Bulma and Vegeta quick glances. Rolling his eyes, Vegeta took Bulma by the arm and pulled her down the hallway.

* * *

Kinomi watched as Frieza tapped his wine goblet in irritation. She was still sitting in the banquet hall. It had cleared out quickly after the news of Cold's death was announced. Only Kinomi, Frieza, and Cooler remained. Cooler was being entertained by the same orange-haired woman as before. Kinomi had noticed that the woman kept glancing at her, but said nothing on it. Instead, she kept her guard up because she knew Frieza was on edge. It had been several hours since anyone last saw Bulma.

_Where are you, Blue_?

_Behind you_.

Kinomi turned her head to see Vegeta and Bulma entering the room. She had to raise an eyebrow at Bulma's clothing. She was barefoot and in one of Vegeta's training suits. What made her smirk was the fact that Bulma was holding on to Vegeta's cape. Smirking, she faced forward as Frieza noticed the two new people in the room.

"Well, well. Look what the monkey dragged in," Frieza said in a low voice.

Standing as close as she was to him, Bulma could feel Vegeta tense at Frieza's words. She knew enough from Kinomi to know that Frieza used that word to insult the Saiyans and their heritage. She leaned into him a bit and relaxed. "Now that wasn't very nice, Frieza. I resent being called a monkey," Bulma said.

Frieza narrowed his eyes at her before smiling. He took a sip of his wine and slowly placed the goblet back on the table. "Where did you find her, Vegeta?"

"Hiding in the brush near the house," Vegeta answered casually. Bulma inwardly smirked at his blatant lie. "Her clothes were unacceptable. Chichi gave her more," he said.

"I see." Frieza looked away from Vegeta and back at Bulma. "Did you show Father a good time?" he asked.

Bulma stiffened. "Never kiss and tell, Frieza," she replied.

Cooler chuckled. "Well, I'm sure you'll regale us with the tale since we can't exactly ask Father."

"Why not? Unless he's dead I don't see why you can't ask him yourselves." Bulma crossed her arms under her bosom.

Frieza's grin returned to his face and gave a throaty laugh. "Well, it's just our luck that he just happens to be dead. Now about that _tale_ you're supposed to _regale_ us with..."

"He's dead?" Bulma whispered. She tried to keep her expression neutral. "How did that happen?" She moved a lock of her hair out of the way.

Vegeta noticed the brothers exchange looks. He turned his head to Bulma and saw that she had exposed her bruised neck. He'd forgotten that her bruises were dark and very noticeable. Bulma appeared as if she did not know why everyone was staring at her. When Frieza beckoned her forward, she went without much protest. He pulled her down to her knees and examined her neck.

"Have you been manhandling her, Vegeta?" Frieza inquired without looking away from Bulma's neck.

"Vegeta hasn't touched me. You can blame these bruises on that brute Cold." The words were barely out of Bulma's mouth before Frieza backhanded her. He pulled the slap quite a bit as only her head snapped to the side. Had he hit her as hard as he could, she would probably be dead. Bulma faced Frieza again. She could feel the bruise starting to rise on her face.

The overlord grabbed ahold of Bulma's chin and held her face close to his. "It is not nice to speak ill of the dead, Bulma."

"You never told me how he died, Frieza," Bulma spat back at him.

Cooler chuckled. "Still feisty even after your twisted brand of _discipline_. I like her very much, brother," he said.

Bulma jerked away from Frieza and got to her feet. "_Discipline_? You left me with that asshole for _discipline_?" She moved away from Frieza, her eyes starting to water with tears. She could feel them burning. "I'll show you _discipline_..."

Kinomi and Vegeta appeared to be the only ones who heard what Bulma whispered at the end. The little Saiyan noticed Bulma's eyes go blank. It was the same look Bulma gave when she used her powers. Panicking somewhat, Kinomi pushed herself into Bulma's mind. _Blue, stop! You'll give yourself away! Stop it now_!

Bulma inhaled and exhaled slowly. "His heart stopped and it might have been caused by poison. You're thinking of blaming Dodoria for it. I'm sure that'll go over really well with your men. That is, if they _accidentally_ find out you lied to them. Good night." She turned on her heel and walked out of the room. Kinomi rose from her seat and followed her.

The silence in the room was broken by Cooler's laugh. "Amazing. She read you like a book. I thought you said you'd built up a defense against her."

"Shut up." Frieza looked at Vegeta. "Get out."

Vegeta wasted no time in leaving. As he walked out, a smirk came to his face. _The woman angered is a very interesting thing. Very interesting indeed_.

* * *

Bulma pushed the doors open to her quarters. Kinomi followed her inside, fussing about her carelessness with her powers. Bulma stopped walking and whirled on the shorter girl. "I killed him. Cold did not die by poison. He may have already had the poison in his system, but I did it. I wanted him dead. I wanted him to cease living. I wanted his heart to stop. And it did! It really did!"

Kinomi stared at Bulma in silence for a moment. "Blue, you're scaring me a little. You aren't usually so gung-ho about using your powers in such a way."

"I know! But that's what's so amazing! All I wanted was to see him suffer. I wanted his life to **END**. I wanted the blood to no longer be pumped through his veins. I wanted him to feel pain..." Bulma went on and on as she began pacing. Kinomi noted the faint glow in Bulma's eyes as she spoke and paced back and forth. "I wanted to **END** him, Kinomi. Then I left him and went to scrub myself clean from his stink. That's where Vegeta found me..."

"Wait!" Kinomi held up a hand and Bulma stopped her pacing. "I thought Vegeta found you by the house."

"He lied. He found me by the waterfall and I think I fainted. I woke up in his bed." Bulma looked down at the cape she was holding. "I'm surprised he let me keep this."

"I'm surprised Vegeta lied to Frieza. Well, he's done it before but never about anything this important. If Frieza found any of this out he'd be furious." Kinomi's expression changed to one of solemnity. "But, you've gotta maintain a cool head, Blue. If Frieza found out everything you could do he'd only exploit you even more. We can't let him do that."

"Don't you think I know that, Kinomi?" Bulma turned and headed for her bedroom. Inside, she tossed the cape to her bed and began peeling off the jumpsuit. She had it only half down when she heard Kinomi gasp. "What? What is it?"

Kinomi walked further into the room. She shut and locked the door before heading over to Bulma. The two moved in front of the mirror and Kinomi showed Bulma patches of blue all over her back. "They don't look like bruises. Do they hurt?" Kinomi touched one of the marks softly. Bulma shook her head, but her face was one of pure shock. "Blue, what are these? It looks like your skin has just been wiped away."

"I don't know." Bulma continued changing clothes. "There was only one mark when I was at the house. First my hair is changing color and now I'm turning blue. Who knows what's going on with me..."

* * *

"Has anyone ever really seen Vegeta have actual conversations?" Raditz asked. The rest of the Saiyans were all gathered in the living room of the house. Raditz's question received shrugs from all those in the room. "It's strange how relaxed he seems around that girl."

"She's a witch," Nappa said. "Vegeta hasn't been able to concentrate properly since he met her. His training is all over the place and his focus is nonexistent."

Chichi smacked the back of Nappa's head. "Bulma is not a witch, Nappa. Vegeta has been acting strange lately, though. I will agree to that. He seems stressed, but I can't blame him about that. Frieza's had us running all over the galaxy for months without a break," she said.

"Maybe that's all Geta needs. A break from everything would probably do him some good. But," Tarble began, "I think Bulma is good for him, though. You all have seen how he is around her. It's like..." He paused and his eyes widened.

Noticing the young prince's silence, Kakarrot craned his neck to look over at him. "What is it, Tarble?"

Tarble closed his gaping mouth and looked in Kakarrot's direction. "Remember when Bulma was talking about her _chosen_? What if that person is Geta?" He noticed the skeptical looks everyone was giving him. "Hear me out. Remember when we stopped on that deserted planet and Geta let off some steam? None of us could get close to him. I saw how he was able to come down from that power surge."

"You've caught my interest, squirt. How did Vegeta stop that power up? I thought he was going to explode," Turles said callously. Chichi smacked the back of his head as she passed him to go to the kitchen. He growled at her which led to Kakarrot kicking him.

"I saw something move up to Vegeta after Raditz grabbed me. It looked like a blue ghost. Do you think it was Bulma?"

"Bulma was light-years away on another planet. Unless she can project herself clear across the galaxy..."

"But what if she can?" Tarble got more skeptical looks. "Just listen to me for a second. Even she doesn't know the full extent of her powers. Astral projection doesn't seem that far-fetched for her. I just have a feeling that she can be very important. We shouldn't try to keep those two apart."

Raditz laughed. "Even if we wanted to, I'm pretty sure Vegeta would just tell us to go fuck ourselves. He's going to do whatever he wants to do. If that includes Bulma, then we have no choice but to get used to her."

* * *

Vegeta landed on Bulma's balcony silently. Although her lights were out, he knew she was still awake. He peered inside the glass doors and saw her sitting on her bed with her back to him. He noticed the mark on her back was bigger and there were more starting to appear. Vegeta entered the room quietly. To his surprise, Bulma did not even flinch. She just sat with her knees drawn up to her chest. He moved silently across the floor and stopped behind her.

"I killed a man," she whispered.

"I'd hardly call Cold a man. Reality is just now setting in, woman?"

Bulma rolled her eyes. "No. It set in when I got back from seeing Frieza. I wonder who he's going to blame it on now. I pretty much blew his chances at blaming Dodoria and making it believable." She grew silent for a moment. "For some reason I could read his mind when I got angry. Frieza found a way to keep me out. How did I bypass that?" she whispered, biting her lip.

"It seems your powers are growing." Vegeta shuffled his feet.

She turned her body to face Vegeta. "My powers are growing? What about you? Do you feel more powerful?" she asked. Vegeta said nothing. He sat at the edge of the bed and did not look at her. "Why are you here, Vegeta? Why did you come see me?"

He remained silent for a few minutes more. "Would you prefer I leave?"

"No!" Bulma looked away from him. She'd spoken much louder than she intended to. "I mean... I rather enjoy your company. You can stay. I just find it strange that you would come see me. That's all. Kinomi told me you aren't exactly very social."

"I'm not." Vegeta shifted to sit where he could see her.

Bulma sat quietly for a moment. Biting her lip, she scooted closer to Vegeta and put her legs down. He gave her a strange look as she got closer. Bulma could see he was close to bolting but she touched his shoulder. It took more effort than usual to keep his thoughts from entering her mind. She did not want to intrude on his thoughts like she had before.

"What are you doing, woman?" Vegeta watched as Bulma took his hands and held them up. She spread her fingers out in his hands so that they matched fingers. Then she closed her eyes. "Woman, what are you..." Vegeta was silenced as he saw a golden light forming between their hands. Bulma slowly moved her hands away and the light grew.

It was as if she was drawing his power out. Bulma opened her eyes as the energy took on the shape of floating spheres. She pulled back further from Vegeta, letting the balls float in her hands. "This is your power; your true power," she whispered.

Vegeta examined the balls of energy. He could tell it was his own, but it was gold. His energy usually gave off a blue aura much like the one Bulma tended to glow with at times. Why was his energy suddenly gold?

"I've never done this before, but I know this is your true power. Why is it gold? Isn't your aura blue like mine?" Bulma voiced his own thoughts as she continued to examine the balls. "Would you like to know a secret?" she asked as she dissipated the balls in her hand.

Still awed by this power she'd shown him, Vegeta nodded numbly. "What?"

Bulma leaned in closer. "Well, I can't sense everyone. Up until a few weeks ago I thought my powers were pretty much universal. Even though Frieza found a way to block me out, I managed to bypass that as well. I can attest that to being angry and the fact that I've been practicing more with using my powers. But, there's still one person who constantly evades me and I don't know why."

"It must be terrifying. Most of your life you've been nearly impossible to take by surprise. Someone with your ego must take that pretty hard," Vegeta said with a snort.

"The sarcasm is unappreciated." Bulma crossed her arms. "I can read their mind, but it seems there's one condition to it."

"And what's that?"

"I have to be making physical contact with this person. Then their thoughts are pretty much forced upon me. There's no escaping them. I have to try harder than usual not to inadvertently read them. It's almost like their thoughts are mine..."

Vegeta listened to Bulma talk about this mysterious person. It seemed odd that only one person was truly immune to her unless she was touching them. "What am I thinking right now?"

Bulma stopped talking at Vegeta's question and glanced over at him. "I'm not going to read your mind, Vegeta."

"You're not going to or you can't?"

_Busted_, Bulma thought morosely. _I just had to tell him about it, didn't I? I need to learn to keep my mouth shut_.

"I'm not going to," she partially lied. She was unprepared when Vegeta reached out and grabbed her hand before she could move away. Unsuspecting of the sudden contact, Bulma had no time to put up a wall to block out Vegeta. "Vegeta..."

He pulled her against his chest. "What am I thinking, woman?"

Bulma let out a long sigh and closed her eyes. "About the first time you saw me and how you felt. About the blue specter you saw while you were in your pod. About releasing so much energy and your aura briefly turning gold. You're thinking about how you feel when you're around me." She winced and opened her eyes. "Vegeta, you're hurting me."

Vegeta looked down at where he was holding her. He released her quickly and saw the handprint he'd left on her. He also took notice of the bruises Cold had left on her body. His eyes traveled up to her neck. "Your bruises anger me," he said as he moved her hair to see the rings around her neck. He finally noticed the bruise Frieza had left on her face and his frown deepened even more.

"Your clear ire about my injuries is somewhat endearing. Dare I say you care about me, Vegeta?" Bulma gave him a small smirk. Vegeta released her and crossed his arms. "You do! You like me! You really like me!" she teased.

"Woman, you're pushing the limits of my patience with you."

"You have an infinite amount of patience with me otherwise you wouldn't care to listen to me babble on and on. I've only been around you for a few days and already you know more about me than Frieza does." Bulma leaned against him again and they entered a long silence.

After what seemed like hours, Vegeta spoke. "Tranquility is such a strange feeling. I'm not entirely sure I like it."

"I'm sure we'll get used to it. Maybe one day it will not be such a foreign feeling." Bulma placed her hand on top of his. She slowly raised it. Strings of light shone between them, connecting their hands. "I remember feeling this power. When I pushed Cold away from me, I felt this power running through me. I think I siphoned some of your power from you."

"How would you do that? We were nowhere near one another."

"I don't know." Bulma shut her eyes. Then she raised her head to look at him. "Unless..."

* * *

**AN: This chapter seems to be more dialogue-heavy than usual. I think I couldn't really avoid it because of how I wanted to progress Bulma and Vegeta's relationship. Oh well...**


	10. 10: Joint Effort

**Destiny**

**Chapter 10: Joint Effort**

* * *

Zarbon saw Kinomi coming down the hallway. She was carrying a bag of some sort along with a shoebox. Just as she was about to pass him, he appeared in front of her, blocking her path. The green-haired man did not miss the annoyed expression on her face as she tried to go around him. He continued to block her path until she finally looked up into his face with an exasperated sigh.

"What do you want, Zarbon? I'm busy," Kinomi said.

"Busy doing the witch's shopping? I didn't know Saiyan royalty had been reduced to catering to the whims of one who holds no rank or office."

Kinomi smirked. "Your attempts at belittling me are so half-assed. I'm sure Kakarrot could come better than that with his unintentional snark. You have got to do better. Now, I have a job to do." She attempted to go around him again. Zarbon grabbed her by her arms and pinned her against the wall. He towered over her small form. To anyone with a weaker mindset, this move would have been quite intimidating. Kinomi simply laughed in his face.

"You are so disrespectful to your betters, little princess. One day it will catch up to you. You are so lucky Frieza has forbidden anyone from harming you. Vegeta is the only thing keeping you safe," Zarbon said.

"Oh? Is that so?" Kinomi dropped the shoebox and kneed him in the gut. The attack was unexpected and Zarbon was clearly not expecting her to hit so hard. He stumbled back away from her. In a flash, she was pinning him against the wall with her now free hand. "Like I said, you come at me then you better come at me like a man." She spit in his face and released him. Before he could do anything in retaliation, she was gone.

_That little bitch! She'll get what's coming to her_, Zarbon thought while angrily wiping away the mucus and saliva from his cheek. _She'll get exactly what's coming to her_.

* * *

Kinomi knocked on Bulma's bathroom door. She heard a muffled response. Assuming it was a confirmation for entry, Kinomi barged in. She paused for a moment when she saw Bulma sitting in the bathtub with her knees drawn up to her chest. The marks on her back had slowed down in their growth, but they were still very present. They were starting to spread to Bulma's arms and they would be very visible if she stuck to her usual wardrobe.

"Did you find anything?" Bulma whispered. Her head was buried beneath her hair. She looked up when she received no answer. Kinomi was just staring at her. "What?"

"Does your maid know about... this?" Kinomi motioned to Bulma body. Bulma shook her head. "Good. The last thing we need is for her blabbing to Frieza about this. He'll just lock you up like some science experiment. I managed to find some spare suits without too much fuss. Vendors on this planet ask far too many questions. I even got you a pair of boots." The princess sat down on the edge of the tub.

Bulma looked at Kinomi's lap and saw the suits there. They were all similar to the one Vegeta let her have. They would cover her entire body up to her neck. "You found some in different colors, I see."

"Yeah. They had a bunch of these things in awful colors like pink. I figured you'd like it. Now get outta the tub so we can get going." Kinomi stood up and left one of the suits on the side of the tub. Bulma smirked when she noticed it was the aforementioned pink one.

* * *

"What was it that old woman told you again?"

Frieza narrowed his eyes when he heard his brother speak. "Does it really matter right now? She said something about Bulma and some _chosen one_ that will overthrow me. Who is Bulma going to meet? She's here all day."

Cooler appeared thoughtful for a moment. "But where does she spend her days? You're getting soft, brother. You've given her far too much freedom lately."

"Her mind is too valuable. If she were to spend her days locked away in a dungeon she'd go crazy and then what use would she be of to me? Besides, I have plans for Bulma."

The two brothers were away from any other dignitaries that remained after the events the night Cold was killed. No one had been reprimanded for the crime yet. Both Frieza and Cooler had the sneaking suspicion that Bulma knew more about the death then she let on. However, she acted no different so Frieza said nothing on it. So far, he'd been letting his father's death go unpunished. This tactic seemed to be even more terrifying than Frieza actually punishing someone. His entire empire was waiting for the inevitable explosion of wrath they thought was sure to come.

"Plans? What kind of plans?" Cooler seemed more interested in anything that concerned Bulma. Frieza had picked up on it soon.

"She isn't going to live forever and I have seen that she ages far faster than I expected. My only option in order to keep someone like her around is to have her breed," Frieza replied.

Cooler smirked. "I figured as much. Do you have anyone in mind?"

"Yes, but I think I'd better keep that a secret."

The brothers lapsed into silence once more. Cooler stopped walking and looked towards the training grounds. He saw the Saiyan princess walking towards the building. Practically skipping to keep up behind the diminutive one was Bulma. He found her outfit peculiar but said nothing.

"Brother, I think you should've paid more attention to that prophecy."

* * *

The training facility was packed. It was almost as if every soldier within the fortress grounds was there. Bulma and Kinomi made their way to where the Saiyans were training in one of the separate rooms. Bulma found it strange that they were even there to begin with. She'd quickly noticed that keeping Saiyans locked in confined spaces for too long bothered them greatly.

When they entered the room, Kinomi and Bulma stopped for a moment. There was a group of women huddled around three tall poles. They were dressed in training clothes as well, but they were not sparring in any manner. Kinomi raised an eyebrow and began to speak, but Tarble's voice interrupted her.

"Over here!" her twin yelled. Tarble smiled as the two girls made their way over to the Saiyan group. "Chichi and Nappa are going at it right now."

Bulma raised an eyebrow. "Chichi fights?" she asked. Both Kinomi and Tarble gave her incredulous looks. "What? I've never seen her fight. I've only seen her cook and stuff. I do know that all the guys appear to be a little scared of her."

"We're not scared of her," Tarble flinched as Nappa was sent careening to the ground by Chichi, "too much. She's just... tough."

"Whatever. She's not _that_ tough. I could take her," Kinomi said.

"Care to back those fierce words up, short stack?" Chichi called from her position in the air. The three glanced up to see her levitating with her arms folded and a stern expression on her face. "I'll take you and your other half together."

Tarble glared over at Kinomi. "Look what you did!" he whispered.

Kinomi rolled her eyes and looked back at Bulma. "You're gonna be okay alone?" she asked. Bulma nodded and walked over to the wall. Kinomi grabbed Tarble's arm and took off towards Chichi.

Bulma watched Kinomi and Tarble double team Chichi. With their speed, she could only follow along if she reached out for the mind signatures. Knowing where they were, she could finally see them. Chichi was clearly the more experienced fighter of the three and was easily handling the twins. The twins clumsily fought around each other, trying to get at Chichi. "I can't help but thing that they'd be more effective if they worked together and not against each other," Bulma whispered to herself.

Tarble appeared to be faster than his twin while Kinomi was clearly the physically stronger one. They kept getting in each other's way. Chichi was definitely taking full advantage of the uncoordinated attack the twins came at her with. She was having a lot of fun doing it as well.

The door opened on the other side of the room and in came Vegeta. Bulma did not know whether to be surprised or not by his lack of shirt. _I'm not exactly going to complain about it_, she thought as she momentarily ogled him. She noticed that he immediately walked towards the group of women. He had a very brief conversation to the blonde woman and then headed towards the rest of his kin. He did not seem to notice her, but Bulma was no longer looking at him. She was staring down the blonde woman.

* * *

"She's watching you," Zangya said to Juu. The blonde turned her head slightly and saw Bulma looking over at them. "It's kinda weird."

"She means no harm. Watch," Juu said. She turned around and looked at Bulma. The other girl seemed surprised by the sudden attention. Juu beckoned Bulma forward with her right index finger. After a few moments of hesitation, Bulma got to her feet and started to make her way over to them. Juu faced Zangya and smirked.

When she got over to them, she crossed her arms under her breasts and inched closer to them. "You have something to say?"

Juu turned her head to the side. "You're Frieza's little princess?"

"I'm getting really tired of people thinking that I'm some sort of special person to him," Bulma said with an exasperated sigh.

"I did not mean to offend. However, he does treat you with far more reverence than he does the rest of us. I'm Juu, by the way. What's your name?" Juu asked, looking back down at what she was doing. She appeared to be helping another girl stretch.

Bulma snorted softly. "I have a feeling you already know."

"You got me. I know a bit about you, but not much. You probably know what my job is." Juu helped the other girl stand and motioned towards the poles. She watched as the other girl took hold of one of them and lifted herself. Two others started to play some sort of music using strange objects Bulma had never seen.

Zangya noticed how Bulma became a bit entranced with the way the other girl moved on the pole. She giggled a little. "You've never seen someone pole dance before?" she inquired. Bulma jumped out of her trance and looked at Zangya. She shook her head fervently. "It's a bit of a specialty among our group. It's why we are the best. We can make men bend to our will with just a swing around a pole."

The lavender-haired beauty nodded numbly and went back to watching the girl bend and move her body in different positions all while swinging slowly on the pole. Juu looked at Zangya for a moment. "How strong are you?" she asked Bulma.

Bulma looked at Juu. "I wouldn't say I'm strong enough to do that. You'd have to be very strong to even hold yourself up that long."

"Well, she's not holding anything up but her body weight. Why don't you give it a try?" Juu asked. She took Bulma's hand and led her to the last pole. "Get rid of those boots. You won't need them here. Now let's see if you can pull yourself up. Take hold of the pole firmly."

Bulma did as she was told. Once her shoes were off, she began to follow Juu's instructions on how to _mount_ the pole. She had to admit that she found it easier than she thought to climb up. Once she was at the top, she looked down at Juu. "What now?"

"Let's test your upper body strength more."

Chichi knocked Kinomi and Tarble down to the ground. She looked at the two as they recovered. Her eyes were then pulled towards Bulma and Juu. "What the hell?"

Kinomi followed Chichi's gaze and saw Bulma across the room. "Who knew Blue was that strong? I didn't think she'd be able to hold herself up like that," she said quietly as she got to her feet.

"Am I doing this right?" Bulma asked shakily. She had managed to turn herself upside down and hold her body up with just her legs.

"Perfect," Juu said from beneath her. "You're better at this than I thought you'd be. You also learn quite fast. How flexible are you?"

Smiling, Bulma suddenly felt brave. She grabbed back on to the pole and brought one leg towards her head while she hung upside down. "More flexible than I have any business being," she said.

Juu clapped. "Not bad, Bulma. Do whatever feels natural. Just remember not to strain yourself. Pulling a muscle is not exactly something one aspires to do."

Bulma kept moving around the pole. "How did you learn to do this?" she asked.

"It was a form of dance on my planet; used for both competition and exotic purposes. It was also used for exercise. I must say that you're a natural at this. If you weren't already employed by Frieza I might've considered you for a job," Juu said as Bulma changed positions.

* * *

"That has to be the sexiest thing I have ever seen in my life," Raditz said. Turles nodded numbly next to him. The two were watching Bulma and the other women as they danced on the poles.

Nappa came up behind the two and knocked them forward on their faces. "Focus and get some decent training done, you two! This isn't the time to be watching ogling women!" His gruff voice echoed off the walls and gave almost everyone pause.

"Come on, Nappa. Taking a little break never hurt anyone," Turles said as he rolled over to look up at the older man. "Besides, you have to be cold-blooded not to see that they are pretty nice to look at."

"On your feet. Gawking at sirens will not make you stronger."

Raditz stood up and glanced back at the women. "Yeah, well it never hurt anyone either." The words were barely out of his mouth before he doubled over in pain from the fist that had firmly planted itself in his abdomen. Kakarrot laughed as Raditz fell back to his knees. "Damn you, Kakarrot..."

"It never hurt, huh?" Kakarrot laughed right before Raditz tackled him. Not wanting to be left out, Turles joined the fray and a three-man wrestling match began.

Vegeta rolled his eyes at his comrades' display of immaturity. He would agree that it was somewhat pleasing to the eye watch a woman as beautiful as Bulma swinging sensually around a long metal pole. However pleasing it was did not mean that Vegeta had to give in to his baser instincts and stare unabashedly like his companions. Instead, he busied his eyes by watching the 2-on-1 spar with Chichi and the twins.

Chichi was still steadily handling the twins. She made it look almost effortless. She may not have been the strongest of the Saiyans, but Chichi's craftiness was second only to Vegeta's. Realistically, there was no such thing as fighting fair and Chichi understood that completely. She was throwing every underhanded trick at the twins and coming out on top each time.

_This is pathetic coming from two members of the royal family. The brats should be ashamed of themselves for letting their caretaker best them_, Vegeta thought. He could see his sister growing more and more frustrated with each failed attack. _Keep your head about you, brat! Do not lose it_! Kinomi gave her eldest brother a scathing glare before rushing forward once more. In her careless flight, she nearly attacked Tarble.

"Watching to see if it gets out of hand?"

Vegeta sighed out loud. "I'm fairly certain that won't happen. They can't even land decent hits on the harpy."

Bulma came up beside him and watched the spar. After a few moments of silence, she crossed her arms, mimicking Vegeta's stance. "I think they should fight as a cohesive unit," she suggested.

The idea came as a surprise to Vegeta. He took his eyes off of the others and looked to his left at Bulma. "A cohesive unit, woman? What makes you say that?"

"Well, look at how they fight. They're practically fighting each other just to fight Chichi. Plus, they each have something the other lacks." Bulma noticed the silence. Vegeta was waiting for her to continue. "Kinomi looks to be the stronger of the two. At least she is physically. Tarble's speed is superior to hers. If they fought as a team they'd be able to do a lot more damage."

The elder prince looked at Bulma out of the corner of his eye. She was still watching the fight. It surprised him slightly that she could even follow along, but given her powers he supposed like every other fighter she could sense their movements. "It could work," he said and Bulma beamed at him. Rolling his eyes, Vegeta looked back up.

10 minutes later, Chichi was dusting off her hands as she lowered herself to the floor. Kinomi and Tarble were on their hands and knees, exhausted from the bout. Chichi walked towards them and crossed her arms. Kinomi glared up at her and Chichi just smirked. The princess got to her feet. Before she could speak, someone scooped her up from behind.

"Come on, munchkin. You need to wrap some of those injuries." Raditz slung Kinomi over his shoulder. She fought in his arms and shouted obscenities at him all the way out of the training room.

* * *

Zarbon was coming around the corner when he heard Kinomi and Raditz arguing. He slid into an alcove and peered around the wall to see the two Saiyans heading towards the infirmary that was only used by the Saiyans. There was more yelling and Raditz soon found himself running back out of the room.

"I can handle this myself! Go back to the training room!" Kinomi yelled from inside the room.

"Fine, you spoiled brat!" Raditz yelled back. He walked back in the direction he originally came from in huff, making sure everyone heard his footsteps.

Zarbon smirked and came out of his hiding place. Without making much noise, he moved swiftly towards the infirmary. He peeked inside, seeing Kinomi with her back turned. She was wrapping up her left forearm. She did not seem to notice them. Zarbon walked into the room. He made just enough noise to let Kinomi know he was there.

"I told you to go back to..." Kinomi blinked when she heard the door close. She whirled around to see Zarbon leaning against the door. "What do you want now, Zarbon? Back for more of my tongue-lashings? I had no idea you were such a glutton for ego-shattering revelations." She giggled a little as she thought about her own insult. "That was pretty good one, if I do say so myself."

"You spit on me again," Zarbon stated.

Kinomi sighed and turned her back on him. She began wrapping her right arm. "And you're still sore about it? I'm sure men you've fought before have done far worse than share their saliva with you. Unless, you're into that sort of thing. No judgment," she said, a lopsided grin coming to her face. "Now why..." Kinomi took a sharp breath.

Zarbon removed the long syringe from Kinomi's lower back. "Finally, that loathsome mouth of yours is shut. I almost thought it impossible to get you to be quiet for once. Now," he placed the syringe on the table in front of Kinomi, "you needn't be afraid." He expected her attack and simply caught her fist. He gave it a light squeeze and Kinomi cried out and sank to her knees. Zarbon released her hand.

Kinomi felt like she could barely hold herself up. Her muscles were relaxed; too relaxed. She felt weak. "What... What did you do to me?" she asked quietly. Zarbon kneeled down to her level. He grabbed her by her ponytail and used it to raise her head to look at him. Kinomi opened her eyes. She could not find the strength to fight her way out of the hold.

"I injected you with a very special relaxant that robs you of your strength. You cannot access the tremendous strength you hold as a Saiyan. Well, at least not until it wears off in a few hours. But although you are weakened, you are not numb." Zarbon exhibited what he meant by pulling her to her feet by her hair. He pushed her against the table and leaned over her. "I want you to be able to feel this, little monkey princess." He backhanded her.

* * *

"Why don't you try to fight with your sister?" Bulma asked as she took a seat next to Tarble. He looked over at her as if she was speaking another language. "You two have what the other lacks. You're definitely faster than Kinomi but her strength is greater than yours. If you two worked together instead of against one another, you could best Chichi."

Tarble considered Bulma's words for a second. "You really think so? Kinomi would sooner cut off her own tail before she'd work _with_ me. She likes to fly solo," he said.

Bulma nodded. "I could see why you would think that. However, you should suggest it to her anyway. You'll never really know her feelings on it until you ask. She might actually think it's a good idea."

The two looked back up to watch Vegeta fight off the other set of twins. He was quite merciless against them. Against the royal twins, Chichi had pulled her punches some. Vegeta was doing no such thing against Turles and Kakarrot. The brothers fought with a peculiar style against Vegeta. At times it looked like they were working together while at others it appeared they were fighting separately. The technique certainly kept Vegeta on his toes. Eventually, Kakarrot received an elbow to the gut while Turles was kicked in his back and fell to the ground.

Nappa crossed his arms as the spar halted momentarily. "It seems he's able to concentrate today. I'm surprised. This is the best he's looked in days; perhaps weeks," he said.

"I agree." Chichi glanced over to where Bulma and Tarble were talking. The usually reserved Tarble was actually smiling and laughing as he talked with Bulma. "Do you think it has anything to do with her? Everyone seems to relax around her."

"I've already told you she's a witch. She's bewitched you all. I was warned about people like her when I still lived on Vegeta-sei," Nappa said. He saw Chichi roll her eyes. "I'm serious. She is anything but harmless. Her mind tricks could take us apart without us being none the wiser."

Chichi looked back over to where Bulma and Tarble were. "She isn't a witch, Nappa. There's no such thing as magic. However, I do agree with what you say about her mind tricks. However, if she can do that to us," she turned her head to Nappa, "the same would go for Frieza and his kind. She does seem to hate him as much as we do."

"Anyone can act, girl. You should not trust her so easily."

"And you shouldn't judge her so harshly, _man_. You haven't even had a proper conversation with her."

Tarble laughed at a joke Bulma made at his brother's expense. "He's not always wound so tight. At least, he wasn't when we were kids. I only remember a little before Geta was sent off with Frieza and before our planet was destroyed. Geta actually used to smile when he played with us. He said he promised our mother to always look out for us. Once Geta makes a promise, he never goes back on it."

"That is an adorable nickname you've given him," Bulma said.

"Don't let him hear you say that."

* * *

"You're very lucky I can't kill you, little monkey princess." Zarbon watched as she tried to roll over onto her stomach as she lay on the floor. Zarbon touched his cheek gingerly. Surprisingly, Kinomi had started to regain her strength already.

_I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Saiyans and their damn tolerance for anything. I would have to use as much as I would use for Dodoria in order to keep her down for any length of time_, he thought morosely.

Kinomi felt like she was going to vomit. She was already spitting up blood. The pain in the lower half of her body was close to unbearable. Zarbon had not been exaggerating when he said she would feel everything. As soon as Kinomi rolled over completely she began to try and push herself up. Her strength was returning little by little. She'd managed to take Zarbon by surprise and hit him in the face. He'd immediately recoiled from her by the shock.

Zarbon stepped over to her and squatted in front of her. He grabbed her chin and lifted her up close to his face. "Do you see what you've done? Frieza will definitely have your head for attacking an officer of higher rank than you." He watched Kinomi crack a smile through the fast-forming bruises and dried blood on her face. "I see nothing funny about your impending demise."

She chuckled again. "If I am to die for simply grazing you, then that is not good enough. I want to be remembered. I want you to _remember_ me every time you look at that pretty face in the mirror," Kinomi whispered.

"Remember you?"

"Yes. Remember me." Without warning, Kinomi lurched forward and took hold of Zarbon's nose with her teeth. She bit down hard, immediately drawing blood. After the surprise of what she was doing caught up to him, Zarbon pushed her away and she slid across the room and left a bloody trail of her travel.

"You fucking bitch!" Zarbon cried out. He covered his nose with his hand. He looked back over at Kinomi. She was spit out a piece of the cartilage from his nose and smiled, showing her bloody teeth. Zarbon growled under his breath as he searched for something to quell the bleeding. Eventually he found some gauze. "I'll be back for your head," he said as he left the room.

Kinomi exhaled as she heard his footsteps getting quieter. Her entire body was aching. She was not particularly unaccustomed to feeling such pain, but experiencing more than just a beating left her feeling raw on the inside. Kinomi managed to push herself up to lean against the wall. She could bring herself to move no further. She did not know how much time passed before she started to feel faint. Yet, her mind began to clear from the strange fogginess the relaxant had put it in. _Perhaps I should call for help now_, she thought wryly. She sighed and closed her eyes.

* * *

Tarble blinked. He turned his head towards the direction of the exit. Bulma noticed his sudden pause. He had a look of deep concern on his face. Before she could inquire he shot up and ran out of the room. Bulma also got to her feet. Chichi looked at her for a moment before following after Tarble. Bulma looked over at Vegeta, who seemed mildly interested in the sudden disappearance of his brother while still fending off the brothers. Eventually, Bulma decided to follow after Chichi and Tarble. When she got to their location, she immediately wished she hadn't.

"Oh my..." The words died on her lips as she looked inside the infirmary. It was in complete disarray. Broken glass and medical utensils littered the floor. There was a trail of blood leading from one pool to another. Bulma traced it with her eyes and saw Tarble and Chichi kneeling next to a body resting against the wall. She took a few steps and froze. "Kinomi," she whispered.

Kinomi opened the one eye she could see clearly out of when she heard Bulma's voice. Chichi was currently trying to stop some of the bleeding on her body while also covering her. Tarble was talking to her and trying to get her to focus. Kinomi could not focus on much. She had used most of her energy to call her twin to her. She wanted nothing more than to sleep at the moment. She was exhausted.

_Where did all this blood come from? I can't see any wound that would_... Chichi's eyes widened when it dawned on her where Kinomi had been bleeding from. She was surprised the revelation had not come sooner given the state of Kinomi's attire. _Who the hell would do this_?

"What the fuck has happened here?" Raditz's voice boomed as he stepped in the room with Nappa following him. "I leave you alone for fifteen minutes and..." He stopped talking when he saw Kinomi's condition.

"Raditz, go start a healing tank up. It needs to be ready as soon as we move her," Chichi said. She heard no movement behind her. She faced Raditz. "_**NOW, RADITZ**_!" she yelled. Her voice snapped Raditz into action and he ran from the infirmary.

* * *

Vegeta held up a hand to halt Turles and Kakarrot. Something was not right. Raditz and Nappa had not come back immediately like they had been instructed to do. He lowered himself to the floor. Turles and Kakarrot followed suit.

"What do you think's keeping him?" Kakarrot inquired.

"I say we go find out. It must be important for him to disobey an order," Turles said. "What do you think, Vegeta?"

The elder prince did not answer straightaway. After what seemed like five minutes, he narrowed his eyes. "I cannot feel Kinomi," he said. For the first time, the other two realized that they could not either. The three started walking to the next familiar energy: Chichi. They found everyone in the room where the rehabilitation tanks were.

Chichi, Tarble, Raditz, and Nappa were gathered around a tank that was in use. Vegeta could see from his place in the doorway that the usually blue healing liquid was tinted purple. There was blood in the tank. Someone was severely hurt to have that much blood mixed in so that would alter the color of the liquid. He quickly moved forward and pushed past Nappa and Raditz.

"We found her in the infirmary like this. She was barely conscious and laying in her own blood. Someone beat her." Chichi kept a small bit of information to herself. She would tell Vegeta later when they were alone. "She should be completely healed in about two days."

Vegeta was watching his sister float in the tank with a rather impassive expression on his face. Her eyes were closed. He could see that one was swollen shut, but Kinomi was clearly unconscious anyway. "Is she sedated?" he asked.

"For now she is. She was not aware enough when we found her to tell us what happened."

"She was attacked. She was attacked by..."

Everyone turned to look at Bulma. She was standing behind them on the other side of the room. She had startled them. They had forgotten she was even in the room. Bulma seemed to be seeing something they were not. Her eyes darkened considerably as she seemed to come to her senses.

"Who was she attacked by?" Tarble asked loudly, his temper flaring. "Tell me!"

Bulma looked in his direction. She could see the ire on his face. He wanted blood for what had happened to his sister. He did not even know all that she had been through. She thought it best not to tell him. Then the gravity of what had been done to Kinomi hit Bulma. Her eyes narrowed and she looked towards the exit to the room. Staring blankly at the door, she started to move towards it. "I'll be right back," she said quietly.

Vegeta watched Bulma leave in her trance-like manner. In this situation, it seemed that Vegeta was the only one keeping his cool. He could practically feel the need for vengeance radiating off his comrades. Bulma saying she knew the culprit definitely did not help. Then the woman just left. "Stay here. Watch the tank and alert me if anything changes." Vegeta started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Nappa asked. He frowned when he got no answer as Vegeta disappeared out the door.

* * *

To say that the soldiers in the fortress were confused when they saw Bulma walking around the fortress without an escort did not nearly cover it. They were confused almost to the point of fear. Everyone knew what would happen if Bulma was touched in a malicious way. They parted as she passed them. Her pace was slow, yet deliberate. She did not deviate from her path nor did she look at anyone. Instead, she appeared to be looking through everyone.

Vegeta caught up with Bulma but followed a few paces behind her. He was curious as to where she was going. He was not sure if Bulma realized he was following her. If she did, she said nothing to him. She continued quietly down the corridors. It did not take Vegeta long to realize they were heading to the living quarters of the higher-ranked officers. His interest rose even further. He had a feeling he knew where she was headed. He walked around her and stepped directly into her path.

Bulma blinked and stopped abruptly when Vegeta appeared in front of her. "Move, Vegeta," she said calmly.

"Why are you heading to Zarbon's quarters?" Vegeta asked. Bulma stared at him for a moment longer before stepping around him. Vegeta reached out for her and grabbed her arm. Bulma whirled on him. He stumbled back from some unseen force while releasing her.

Bulma seemed surprised by her actions but quickly masked it behind a stern expression. "Leave me be, Vegeta." She turned on her heel and kept walking. Vegeta rubbed his aching hand and watched her go. Sighing again, he headed after her at a greater distance.

* * *

Zarbon examined his mutilated nose. No amount of reconstruction would be able to save it. _I can't believe that little bitch! I should've killed her! This is completely unacceptable_, he thought angrily. He knew he could not kill Kinomi no matter how much he wanted to. Frieza had made it clear that Kinomi was not to be harmed. _No matter. She will not be speaking anytime soon. By the time she heals, the punishment will have already been carried out_.

"You and Frieza seem to have a thing for blaming Dodoria for everything. I would've thought there was more camaraderie between at least you and Dodoria. I'm almost disappointed, Zarbon."

The green-haired man turned around. Bulma was walking into the room. She was clearly irate about something. "What the hell are you talking about? I don't plan on doing anything to Dodoria," he lied. "And how did you get in here?"

"I came through the front door. What I do to you next depends on how you answer this next question." Bulma walked up closer to him. "What did you do to Kinomi?"

Zarbon frowned at her. He definitely could not lay a single finger on Bulma. Frieza would not care whose fault it was. He would kill anyone who harmed a hair on Bulma's head. "Nothing that she didn't deserve," he replied.

Vegeta walked in Zarbon's quarters just as a flash of light blinded him. He squinted as the light died down a bit. He walked further inside and saw Bulma and Zarbon. Bulma was... different. Somehow her entire body was engulfed in blue light. She had her back to him. Something about seeing her like this was familiar. It was as if he'd seen this ethereal version of Bulma before. The prince shook his head. He had to stop Bulma before she did anything stupid.

"What are you?" Zarbon asked. He was beginning to feel a bit frightened of Bulma. He had no idea she had any other power besides the ability read minds. What was he looking at now. "Does Frieza know you wield such power?"

"No," Bulma's eyes glowed brightly, "and he won't ever find out, either." Before she could do anything, Vegeta grabbed her arms and pulled them behind her back. Startled by the move, Bulma immediately began to fight her way out of Vegeta's hold. "Release me! If you knew what he did, you'd want to kill him to!" she yelled.

"Woman, calm down and tell me," Vegeta said, unfazed by her screaming. Chichi had easily subjected him to worse. "You've already given away too much," he reasoned. Bulma stopped her thrashing. Her aura subsided and her eyes went back to normal. She looked up at Vegeta's face. With her right hand, she touched his cheek.

Behind the two, Zarbon watched the scene with strange curiosity. Even if Bulma relayed what he did to Kinomi to Frieza, he could easily use this newfound information about her powers to his advantage. If his nose was not in so much pain, he would smirk at the idea of holding this over both Vegeta and Bulma's heads. Before he could say anything, he was being pinned against the wall by Vegeta. The shorter man held him off his feet.

"You put your filthy hands on Kinomi?" Though his actions were harsh, Vegeta's voice was quite calm. When he got no answer immediately, Vegeta held out his free hand. It began glowing gold with his energy. "I'm not going to repeat myself."

Zarbon laughed. "Vegeta, you and I both know you're not powerful enough to defeat me." He freed himself only to get punched in the mid-section by Vegeta's hand. Whatever energy Vegeta had on his hand drilled right through Zarbon's armor. Vegeta had punched him just hard enough to impale him, but not kill him. When Vegeta removed his hand, Zarbon fell to his knees.

Bulma watched as Vegeta turned on his heel and walked back in her direction. His left hand was dripping with blood. She swallowed hard as he got closer. As he passed, Vegeta took hold of her arm. Bulma started to turn and follow him but pulled away. She ran over to Zarbon and kneeled to the floor.

"Woman, what the hell are you doing? Leave the bastard there," Vegeta said. He turned to see Bulma turning Zarbon's head to look at her. She opened his eyes and stared down at him for a moment. After a few seconds, Bulma stood and moved over to Vegeta. "What did you do?"

"You'll thank me later."

* * *

Frieza looked at Kinomi's unconscious body inside the tank. Her face was recognizable again but many of the wounds on her were still fresh. "So you can't tell me how this happened? Or how Zarbon ended up in a tank as well?" he asked into the air. Dodoria avoided eye contact with the overlord. "Am I speaking to myself?"

"Perhaps they did this to each other, brother," Cooler said from the back of the room. "That thought never crossed your mind?"

"If that was the case, _brother_, then why was Zarbon found in his quarters while this one has been here for at least an hour longer?" Frieza glared at Cooler. The older brother simply shrugged. "You don't know? Then stay out of it. Dodoria."

"Yes?" Dodoria stepped up beside Frieza. He had been the one to find Zarbon near death in his own blood.

"Investigate this matter but tell no one the true reason. I don't care how you do it, just make sure you find out what happened," he said.

"Of course, Lord Frieza."

Frieza watched as Dodoria cleared out, leaving only Cooler with him. He looked back at the tank Kinomi was in. She had at the least 40 hours left in order to completely heal. He found it odd that none of her kin was around. Frieza had been informed that they were the ones to put her in the healing tank. But why had Zarbon been found clear across the fortress? The timeline did not make sense.

"Perhaps he did this to her," Cooler sauntered up beside Frieza, "and someone else got revenge. I wouldn't put it past one of her brethren to avenge her. After all, she received far more than just a beating."

"I'm sure she did. Zarbon's quite a charmer," Frieza said sarcastically. "I'm also thinking that there indeed a third party in this. But who? Vegeta would never attack anyone who ranks higher than him. He isn't even close to Zarbon's level."

"Are you sure about that? I heard he trains almost nonstop. Surely his power has grown over time."

"The difference between Zarbon and Vegeta is far greater than even Vegeta knows. Besides, those monkeys cannot raise their potential. At birth they are measured for the maximum power that they can achieve. Vegeta's maximum is nowhere in Zarbon's league," Frieza responded with a matter-of-fact tone.

Cooler nodded. "Have you tested that theory, brother? You said yourself that each generation of Saiyans kept getting more powerful. Isn't that why you killed them off? I mean, eventually one would be born more powerful than even me. Fortunately, you put a stop to that immediately. Also, Zarbon has given us a scapegoat for our father's murder. Imagine that..."

Frieza knew his brother was being snarky just to annoy him even more than he already was. Instead of taking the bait, he turned to walk out of the room. "I must tell Ginyu that he'll have to wait a little longer for his present."

* * *

"You were reckless!"

Bulma followed Vegeta into her room. "You don't have to yell at me. My head hurts enough without your voice echoing through it." She sat down on her bed and buried her head in her hands.

"Your recklessness is second only to Kinomi's. I don't know how you two have survived this long. Just what did you think you were going to do to that fool?" Vegeta was indeed quite irate with her even though he had no idea why he was scolding her.

"I'm actually quite surprised that you're angrier with me than you are with Zarbon. I daresay all this fury is misplaced," Bulma said with a snide tone.

Vegeta glared in Bulma's direction. "You have no idea how _angry_ I am, woman. I've just learned to hide it better than you have. There are only two things that rob you of your sanity and common sense: anger and fear. I do not have the time to succumb to either."

Bulma looked up at him and blinked a few times. "Wow. That actually is quite a profound statement. I wish I had an ounce of your self-control. However, you do have quite the temper."

"Woman, this is not anywhere near my temper. I'm merely annoyed with you." Vegeta crossed his arms and turned away from her. "Between you and Kinomi, I don't know who will either get killed or drive me mad first. It's like you two need supervision every hour of every day."

"Hey!" Bulma rose to her feet. "I can defend myself just fine! I think I have proven that I can... to a certain extent. And why do you care so much? If I'm such a _burden_, you should just wash your hands of me and be done with it! I don't need your protection nor did I ask for it!"

Vegeta turned his head to look at her again. "Woman, you and I both know I can't do that," he looked away once more, "even if I wanted to." He could not decide which way he meant that; in order to keep his sister safe or because he needed Bulma.

Bulma inhaled sharply. She did not know if he knew what he said. She sighed and sat back down on her bed in a huff. "I suppose you can't. As long as Kinomi is protecting me, you have to see to it that she does her job, right? That would mean stepping in when cannot in order to save her from punishment. I understand." She put a hand to her head again. "I wonder when this pain will..."

Bulma's sudden silence caused Vegeta to face her. She was now grabbing onto her head with both hands. Her face was twisted into a silent scream. Vegeta stepped over to her. "Woman?" He tried to get her to open her eyes. Just as she did, he body was once again engulfed in the blue light. She threw Vegeta back as she stood, still clawing at her head. "Woman!"

Despite her blinding aura, Vegeta could still feel no power emanating from her. Bulma dropped her left hand from her head. Her right hand remained balled up against where he knew the bald spot to be. With a sudden turn of her head, Bulma yanked something from her head. Vegeta saw something fall from her hand as she dropped it to her side. After that, Bulma's body dropped as well.

Vegeta got to his feet. While Bulma's body had crumpled to the floor, a ghostly figure of her remained standing in the place she once stood. Bulma opened her eyes and looked at Vegeta. A smile crossed her face. She had not yet noticed what had happened. "How do you feel?" Vegeta asked.

"Far better than I did a few minutes ago. Whatever I just took out of my head was what was causing me pain. Where is it?" She looked down on the floor and saw her lifeless body. It took a moment for Bulma to realize what she was looking at. With a gasp, she looked back at Vegeta. "What the hell is happening to me?"


	11. 11: Forced Hand

**Destiny**

**Chapter 11: Forced Hand**

* * *

"Well this gives new meaning to _out of body experience_," Bulma mumbled. She was staring down at her limp body. She kneeled down and examined herself closer. "So this is what it's like to look at yourself from above..."

Vegeta crossed his arms. "Woman, do you have any idea how to get back into your body?"

Bulma rose to stand on her feet. "Not the slightest. This has never happened before, Vegeta. I'm not even entirely sure what is going on." She looked back down at the floor. Next to her body's head was a metal object covered in blood. She bent down to pick it up but her hand passed through it. "Doesn't look like I can touch anything either. Could you pick that up and see what it is?" she asked, looking over to Vegeta. Shrugging he walked forward and picked up the chip-like object.

"It's an epsilon chip. Frieza uses these as tracking devices," he said.

"If Frieza had a tracking device on me he wouldn't need to send out half his army to find me. That can't possibly be a tracking device. And why would it be lodged in my head? Don't they usually put those in the base of the spine?" Bulma stepped towards Vegeta as he looked at it. "Good thing it was just under the skin."

Vegeta examined the chip. He noticed a small needle-like object on the underside. He bent down to Bulma's body and looked at the spot where she had removed the chip. There was a small puncture wound but no skin missing other than that. "Artificial skin hid the chip. The chip served some other purpose. Tarble could probably determine what that was," he said.

"That's all well and good, Vegeta. But I'm more concerned about how I'm supposed to get back in my body. I can't even touch myself." Bulma and Vegeta stared blankly at each other. Bulma rolled her eyes. "That did not come out right."

The prince chuckled softly. "You are certain you don't know how to return to your body?"

"Vegeta, if I did I would've five minutes ago." Bulma crossed her arms and walked away from Vegeta towards her mirror. She examined herself. Her hair had been replaced with strands of blue light. "I look like the elder," she whispered.

"Elder? You mean that old woman you said had achieved some sort of higher state of being?" Vegeta asked. Bulma nodded slowly. "Then perhaps you have as well. Surely you must've seen her go back into her body."

Bulma closed her eyes and tried to remember the elder on her planet. From her memories, she could only gather that the woman's ethereal body simply disappeared and her real body was once again reanimated. Bulma turned and faced her own body. She inhaled and slowly exhaled. Then she disappeared.

Mildly concerned, Vegeta glanced around to see where Bulma had gone. He heard a moan coming from below him. Bulma was coming around. He moved back towards her and watched her pull herself upright and lean against the bed.

"That was definitely one of the stranger experiences of my life," she said.

* * *

Juu moved quietly down the dimly lit corridors of the fortress. Night had fallen on Frieza Planet 1 and there were few guards around. The blonde was headed towards the communications room of the fortress. Zangya had managed to lift a passkey to the room from one of the soldiers she was with. Juu reached the large door to the room. After checking that no one was around, she pulled out the passkey from her robes and slid it into the lock. With a quick turn, the door opened and Juu hastily entered.

The lights of the room turned on automatically. Juu glanced around the large room. There were several stations cluttered with different communication devices. Juu only needed the old-fashioned radio. She moved towards the lone desk off in the far left corner of the spacious room.

_Let's see if this thing even works_, she thought as she slid into the chair. She knew Vegeta had a radio like this in his residence, but after the events earlier in the day she did not want to intrude on the Saiyan contingent. Making unauthorized calls from Planet 1 was risky in and of itself. The last thing she wanted was for it to be traced back to the Saiyans.

After flipping a series of switches to turn the radio on, Juu began tuning it to the correct frequency. After finding it, she secured the transmission and turned on the microphone. "This is Yellow calling Black." Juu waited a moment. All she heard was static. Narrowing her eyes, she brought the microphone to her mouth again. "This is Yellow calling Black. Respond, Black."

There was few more seconds of static before someone picked up on the other side. "This is Black. How's it going, Yellow?"

Juu rolled her eyes at how relaxed _Black_ sounded. "What is your status, Black? Where are you?"

"Still on Alpha Six. How was your meeting with Blue?"

"Satisfactory. We seem to be on the same page for now. We had a discussion of other potential allies. One works directly under Frieza and has very interesting abilities. She could be of use to us. How are things on your end?" Juu relaxed back in her seat. It was a full minute before _Black_ responded to her. Sighing, she leaned forward to the microphone.

"Some of our... compatriots were restless," came the response.

Juu rolled her eyes. "_Were_ implies that they are no longer restless."

"That's because they are no longer here."

Silence reigned between the two for a few moments. "And do you have any idea where they are headed?"

"Where else? I believe his words were '_if you want something done, do it yourself_.' I had no idea he could be so proactive. He's usually quite slovenly when you aren't here to boss him around."

"How can you be nonchalant about this? That idiot is throwing a wrench into our plans. What does he think he can accomplish by going off on his own?" Juu pinched the bridge of her nose. "How many did he take with him?"

"About half of the forces on Alpha Six. I don't know if he's stopped anywhere to pick up any others. Personally, I think everyone who was stupid enough to go with him needed to go. We're probably better off without them."

"And the supplies?"

"Three flagships were taken, each armed and with at least thirty smaller fighter ships. It's a good-sized army he's got to attack with. However, I highly doubt any of that will work."

Juu sat quietly for a moment, pondering her next move. "What about Chrome?"

_Black_ chuckled on his end. "He's still here. He tried valiantly to stop Orange from running off. Orange was not hearing any of that."

"This idiot will inevitably force our hand."

"By now he should be about seven days away. What will you do?"

"I haven't figured that out yet." Juu heard voices from the corridor. "Time is short. I will contact you again in two days. Be alert." She shut off the connection and turned the old radio off. She soundlessly left the room and began the trek back to the quarters where he ladies waited for her.

Juu was steaming as she walked down the halls. She got a few strange looks from the soldiers that were on guard and milling about the fortress. A few even started to approach her but one cold glare from her blue eyes shut them down wordlessly. By the time she reached her final destination, Juu was red in the face.

Zangya was the first to notice Juu's return. Most of the others were already resting on the mass of pillows they called a bed. Zangya could tell that Juu was in no mood for pleasantries. "By the sour look on your face, I can see that it did not go well," she said. She watched as Juu removed her robe, revealing a bodysuit with several weapons strapped to her person. Then the blonde started pacing as she began removing weapons.

"That fool is on his way here to stage a coup. Does he really think he can win? He doesn't have the resources and he risks exposing our entire operation." Juu paused her pacing. She faced Zangya again. "The Saiyans will not be pleased to hear about this."

"Let me guess. The _fool_ is none other than Yamcha."

Juu smirked. "Who else?"

"My brothers weren't with him, are they? They normally don't pass up the chance to fight; especially Bojack and Bido," Zangya said. She raised her left hand. Juu noticed the small wire-like strings coming from her fingertips and reaching the high ceiling of the room.

"Your brothers are stupid, but they're not _that_ stupid. They know I'd kick their asses if they pulled a stunt like that. They also know that we are not ready to stage our attack in earnest. Bojack knows not to jeopardize us. Plus, Nana would've told me if they left."

Zangya retracted the barely visible strings and looked back in Juu's direction. "How long until the dimwit arrives here and what are we going to do?"

Juu sighed and began removing the weapons from her body. She found and spot on the mass of pillows and laid down. "We have no choice but to ride this out. I'll need to tell Vegeta. I can't wait for his majesty's reaction."

* * *

Tarble knocked on his brother's bedroom door. He heard a muffled growl from the other side. Rolling his eyes, he opened the door and entered. Vegeta was laying on his bed, half asleep. Tarble knew he'd spent most of the night before at the fortress, watching over Kinomi and looking in on Bulma. Though he was sure Vegeta would never admit to that last one, Tarble was sure that's what his brother had been doing.

"Do you have something to say or not?" Vegeta's voice was dampened by the pillow his head was buried in. "Out with it."

"Where did you say you got this from?" Tarble asked, looking at the chip Vegeta had asked him to analyze.

"I never said where I got it from. What do you have on it?"

Tarble took a seat in a chair across from the bed. "These chips can have more than one purpose, but they're usually just used as tracking devices. They're basically undetectable and some people probably don't even realize they have one."

Vegeta heaved a sigh from the bed. "You're not telling me anything I don't already know, Tarble."

"I'm getting there." Tarble looked closely at the chip. "This one has a totally different purpose. Its programming is something I've never seen; only imagined. Instead of tracking, this is something of a limiter. I need to know where you found this, Geta. Frieza could be using these on anyone."

Tarble's words got Vegeta to sit up. There was a concerned look on his younger brother's face. Scratching his head, Vegeta sat with his legs and arms crossed. "The woman removed it from her head. It was lodged under some artificial skin on her scalp," he said.

"That bald spot she has?" Tarble lowered the chip. "What happened when she removed it?"

"The damn thing had been wreaking havoc on her head. She... separated herself from her body once she tore it out. She managed to fix herself, but it was still strange."

"Wait! _Separate herself_? What does that mean?"

"Just what I said. Her consciousness separated itself from her corporeal body. You said that thing is a limiter. What does it limit? Power?"

Tarble came out of his thoughts about Bulma and nodded. "I would assume it limited Bulma's ability to access all of her powers. She told us that she's only really used her ability to read minds. She's just discovering the other abilities she has. I don't think it would be wrong to say that Bulma might be much more powerful than she appears."

Vegeta huffed and glared at the wall. "She has almost no destructive potential. The only reason I can pinpoint where she is all the time is because..." He stopped and looked at his brother. Tarble had looked up from examining the chip. "The only reason I can sense her is usually because she isn't too far from Kinomi."

_He's lying. Who knew Geta would lie over a girl_, Tarble thought. He managed to keep a smirk off his face. One would have to be blind, deaf, and dumb not to notice the way Bulma and Vegeta were around each other. It was subtle since they were still crass towards one another, but it was there nonetheless.

"Well now that this has been removed, Bulma will probably have to learn to control her powers even more. Judging by how powerful this thing was, it'll be like she never had control at all."

"It was limiting her that much?"

"I'm pretty sure Bulma's only used less than a fourth of what she's capable of. That is probably why Frieza had it implanted in the first place."

* * *

Bulma sat in the room where the healing tanks were. Kinomi had yet to wake up, but at least she was recognizable again. The swelling in her face had gone down considerably. From the looks of it, she would have a pretty noticeable scar going down the right side of her face from her forehead to the corner of her mouth. Bulma squeezed her fists together as she took in that information. Kinomi did not seem too hooked on her appearance, but Bulma thought she was stunningly beautiful.

_Damn that Zarbon. I hope he lives with his scars as well. There's no replacing a nose, is there? Jackass got what he deserved_, Bulma thought. She turned her head sharply when she heard the door begin to open. She immediately diverted her head. Sighing, she noticed the dent she'd put in the wall. _I have got to get better control of that. What is wrong with me this morning? My mind has been all over the place_.

Raditz entered the room. He seemed surprised to see Bulma, but said nothing. Instead, he made his way over to Kinomi's tank. A smirk came to his face. "Her first battle scar. She'll be pretty pleased with that," he said.

"Battle scar? When did acquiring a battle scar become a _pleasing_ thing?" Bulma asked.

"We live for battle. You haven't fought anyone worth fighting if you don't get a scar from them. Kinomi's skin had been flawless. She and Tarble had yet to gain any scars. I don't expect Tarble to gain any anytime soon. She'll be pleased that she left just as big of a lasting scar on Zarbon. I don't think he'll ever show his face properly again," Raditz said with a snicker.

Bulma sighed. She would never fully understand Saiyans. "Vegeta has a lot of scars. I assume he's met plenty of worthy adversaries," she said quietly. She saw Raditz's smile fall. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

"Vegeta's scars are from protection, not battle." Raditz faced her. "There has never been someone the prince can't handle." His face was stern as he told her this. Bulma stared at him in shock for a moment. Then she smiled.

"Of course there isn't. Vegeta's potential is greater than anyone I've ever come across."

"Just don't let him hear that. His head will inflate so much that it will implode upon itself like a dying star."

Raditz and Bulma looked back at the healing tank. Kinomi's eyes had opened. It was her voice they had heard coming from the speaker on the tank. Bulma stood up and walked over to the tank, smiling at her bodyguard. "How are you feeling in there?" she asked.

"Like shit." Kinomi turned her eyes towards Raditz. "You weren't getting all sentimental, were you? I can't have that," she said playfully.

"Sentimental? I'm not sure I know what that means," Raditz replied with a snort.

"Whatever. How long do I have left in here, Blue?" Kinomi was fighting to stay awake as it was. The only reason she had even managed to awaken was because she felt Bulma's presence in her mind.

Bulma looked at the tank's control pad. "About eighteen more hours." She was unsure if Kinomi heard her. She was unconscious again. "Well, at least she'll be all right. I can't imagine if she'd never talk again."

"Kinomi is too strong for that," Raditz said. He sighed and looked at the wall. "I shouldn't have left her in there."

The telepath had no idea what to say to Raditz's admission. It was unlike any of the Saiyans to say anything remotely emotional. Vegeta had a few slipups, but they were only around her. She clasped her hands together and went back to staring at Kinomi's healing form. "I'm sure she doesn't blame you. No one blames you. Besides, Kinomi fights her own battles. She would've hated you for stepping in."

The larger Saiyan nodded. "She definitely would have."

It was clear as day to Bulma, without even reading his thoughts, that Raditz held some sort of affection for Kinomi. She wondered if he would ever act on it. Then she remembered who Kinomi's older brother was. _Vegeta would definitely have something to say about that. Who knew that Saiyans can be romantics like the rest of us mere mortals_, she thought with a small giggle.

* * *

The corridors of the fortress were more crowded than usual. A purge had just finished and those on the purging mission were reporting back to Frieza. Apparently the purging had not gone well. Vegeta only heard random tidbits as he made his way towards the infirmary. Zarbon was due to get out of the tank in 30 minutes and Vegeta wanted to be there when he did. He had a few choice words for Frieza's right hand.

A raven-haired woman with a very bright lip color on walked in the opposite direction of Vegeta. He barely spared her a second glance, but he recognized her as one of Juu's women. She was watching him as she flounced down the corridor seductively. As the two passed one another, their arms touched. Her fingers wrapped around his gloved ones. Before Vegeta could move to reprimand her for being so bold, she flashed him a smile and stepped back, bowing her head.

"Excuse me, Prince Vegeta," she said quietly. She looked up at him and gave him a wink. Then she turned and kept walking in the other direction.

Vegeta squeezed his fists together. Blinking, he felt something crumbling in his right hand. He opened it up and saw a small note. He looked back up and saw the woman had disappeared through the crowd. He returning to walking down the corridors and unfolded the note.

_**D-Block in 15 – 18**_**  
**

The prince crumpled the bit of paper and incinerated it in his fists, dropping the ashes behind him as he walked. _D-Block is where the diplomats are residing. Why would she want to meet there_? Vegeta put it out of his mind for the moment and continued on into the infirmary.

It seemed Vegeta's scheduling was off. When he arrived in the infirmary, Zarbon was already toweling off from a shower. He walked towards the man silently. Just as Zarbon turned around, Vegeta grabbed him around the neck and slammed him against the wall. Clearly taken by surprise, Zarbon clawed at Vegeta's hand. The prince ignored his protests and took in the sight of his mutilated face. A large chunk of Zarbon's nose was missing. There was a large scar down the left side of his face.

"I'd say this new look is an improvement," Vegeta said.

Zarbon finally managed to shake Vegeta off. "Who do you think you are putting your hands on..." Zarbon inhaled sharply as Vegeta took hold of his genitals and squeezed.

"If you ever so much as breathe in the same direction as sister again, I will mutilate you in ways that would make you useless to a woman."

The taller man swallowed. "Frieza will hear of this..." Zarbon said through clenched teeth. In return, Vegeta squeezed harder.

"Is that so? Well, if you want everyone to know that a mere _monkey_ beat you within an inch of your life by all means report this to Frieza." Vegeta saw Zarbon bite his lip. "I didn't think so." He released the man roughly and turned to walk away.

Zarbon watched Vegeta leave in the same manner in which he entered. _The gall of the stupid monkey! How dare he put his hands on me_! He looked at himself in the mirror. His hand moved up to touch his nose. While it had healed, there was no replacing the chunk of cartilage that Kinomi had bitten off. _That little skank will pay dearly for this_.

* * *

D-Block was strangely quiet and the corridors were far less crowded. It was to be expected of the place where Frieza put up his most honored guests. Despite its seclusion from the rest of the noisy fortress, there were many security cameras. It was the least private area in the fortress. Vegeta would have been better off meeting Juu in the boiler room.

The prince walked slowly and deliberately down the corridor. There were a few guards conversing along the walls but none paid Vegeta any mind. He came to a crossing in the hall and looked around. There was no sign of Juu. Narrowing his eyes in irritation, he continued down the hall. He was passing a crossing when Juu came around the corner.

_It amazes me how she's always the one with the most clothes on_, Vegeta mused. Juu was wearing long robes that hid most of her body. Her hands were lost in the gigantic sleeves and there was a small train behind her. Vegeta had no doubt that she was hiding several weapons on her person.

Juu looked up and saw him approaching. "Prince Vegeta. It is an honor to see you once again," she said.

Vegeta glanced up for a moment. There were cameras everywhere in the corridor. There were so many that even Vegeta did not know all the locations. He did know one of the few places there were _not_ any cameras; the most random places ever. Just as Juu got closer to him, he reached out for her and pushed her against the wall. To any passerby it just appeared like Vegeta was engaging a courtesan.

"This is an interesting way to make our meeting seem... inconspicuous." Juu leaned forward, her lips close to his ear. "But there are some who will think such a public display is out of character for a prude like you," she whispered.

Narrowing his eyes, Vegeta grabbed her by the arm. He pulled her a few feet and kicked in a door to a custodian closet. He practically tossed her inside before following and slamming the door shut. He faced her and pulled the string to turn on the single light bulb. "What do you need me for?"

The blonde crossed her arms. "I spoke with my brother last night. He informed me that a few of our... allies got restless and are on their way here to attack this planet. We have six days."

Vegeta blinked a few times, taking in her words. "Are they mad? This is not the place to engage Frieza and it definitely isn't the right time. And how would they even know where Planet One is? No one does. I have told no one of its location."

"That's what I said, but Yamcha is deaf to all reason at times. Even me and my girls were brought here only with Frieza's permission. The fool must've found out somehow, though." Juu noticed Vegeta's eyes narrow. "What's wrong?"

"Yamcha? That idiot bandit that runs around the galaxy stealing from cargo ships?" he asked.

The blonde cleared her throat softly. "Well, we have to get our supplies from somewhere. Someone buying loads of armaments would surely draw attention. So, the easiest route is to just have Yamcha steal some of it to keep them guessing." Juu watched Vegeta cross his arms and look away from her towards the wall. She chuckled softly. "Don't tell me you abhor thieves, Vegeta."

Vegeta looked back at her out of the corner of his eye. "This fool doesn't expect us to join his cause, does he? If anything, Frieza will send us out to eradicate the _hindrance_. It'll be like squashing a bug under my boot. Does he really think I'll let him live? Frieza will either want him dead or taken into custody for questioning about this rebellion. Torture will make a man say anything."

Juu bit her lip. Yamcha was definitely not the bravest even though he tried to be. If he was captured, Frieza would definitely order him to be tortured. Killing him was no good, either. She knew Vegeta definitely didn't see it that way. Yamcha was either going to force his hand or cause him to choose between killing an ally and condemning him to something even more inhumane. "What will you do then? We are not ready to completely reveal ourselves."

"If anyone is apprehended they will be questioned until they speak. Frieza's methods of torture are not for the weak-minded with false bravado. Your friend is going to die regardless. You should pray that I do not cross paths with him. I cannot afford having anyone with loose lips," Vegeta said. He turned and left the closet.

Smirking, Juu pulled the string to the light. "I would expect nothing less, Vegeta," she said as she followed him out.

Right on cue, Vegeta received a message through his scouter. _Frieza wants to meet with the officers. How predictable_, he thought has he turned his scouter off.

* * *

Bulma was examining Kinomi's scouter. Raditz had left it in the room along with a change of clothes and new pair of boots. Bulma wondered why Kinomi used a scouter. In fact, all of the Saiyans wore them. According to Kinomi, they could sense other people and their power without the aid of them. That appeared to be a secret and Bulma was not supposed to tell anyone else that.

_I wonder how this thing really works though_, she thought. Looking up, she saw Kinomi was still asleep in the tank. Bulma tentatively put the scouter over her right eye. With a few presses of the button on the earpiece, she got it to work. Several numbers popped up on the tiny screen. She pressed it a few times and a single number popped up. She realized that it was coming from the tank. _This is Kinomi's energy. It's not very high. I thought she would be more powerful. I guess that's to be expected given her condition_. Bulma continued pressing buttons. A few seconds later, she heard a voice speaking in her ear.

"_All officers are to report to the main hall. I repeat, all officers are to report to the main hall immediately_," the voice said.

Bulma removed the scouter. Outside the room she could hear the patter of many feet. She glanced over at Kinomi floating in the tank. Exhaling loudly, she moved towards the door and opened it slowly. The majority of the people had passed already. _I'm not supposed to go roaming around without anyone with me_, she thought. After a moment of hesitance, she threw caution to the wind and exited the room.

Walking among the other men was easier than she thought it would be. Normally she would stick out and they would gawk. At the moment, they were talking amongst themselves about the possible scenarios for why Frieza wanted all of the officers gathered in one place. Bulma would probably never admit it out loud, but it was somewhat liberating to be able to roam about by herself. Rarely was she ever alone and now here she was.

Just as she was about to enter the hall with the other men, a hand closed around her left arm and pulled her from the doorway. Bulma gave a little screech before a hand clamped over her mouth. Her back hit the wall and the wind was knocked out of her. She squeezed her eyes shut, ready for anything.

"Woman, what do you think you're doing?"

Bulma opened her eyes and saw Vegeta glaring down at her. The doors to the main hall had shut and the two were left alone in the corner. Bulma motioned to her face and Vegeta removed his hand. "Were you trying to suffocate me or something?"

"I'm just curious as to why you're wondering about this place without an escort. This army wouldn't think twice about having their way with you if they could keep it from Frieza. You shouldn't be alone," Vegeta said.

"I can take care of myself. I think I proved that with Cold. Besides, I was curious to see why Frieza called everyone together."

Vegeta crossed his arms. "There is a hostile fleet heading this way."

"To attack? Here? Why? Who is it?"

Vegeta briefly thought about telling her what he knew from Juu. He quickly put it out of his mind, citing that he did not fully trust her to remain quiet about it. "Does it matter? All Frieza is doing is telling them how he wants these rebels dealt with."

Bulma chuckled quietly. "You'd think whoever this is would have the sense to at least cloak their ships. They're heading into a deathtrap by broadcasting their arrival."

"So it seems."

Vegeta and Bulma turned their heads to see Cooler approaching them. Vegeta stepped in front of Bulma discreetly. His stance was somewhat protective. Bulma took no notice of it but Cooler did. A smirk crossed his face and he stopped walking a few feet from them.

"Is there something you need?" Vegeta asked, his annoyance plain as day in his tone.

"I'm wondering why you are not at the meeting. Surely Frieza will want a few words with you. You are a very valuable asset," Cooler responded casually.

"Due to Kinomi's incapacitation, I am escorting the woman around. She is a _valuable asset_ as well and I think Frieza would be displeased if anything were to happen to her. I'm taking her back to her chambers and I will speak to Frieza later." Vegeta turned his head to look at Bulma. She was still against the wall and seemingly trying to meld into it.

"I can escort her back. Besides, I'd love a chance to get to know the little flower just a bit more." Cooler looked behind Vegeta and held out his right hand to Bulma. "Come with me. I promise I won't bite."

Bulma chanced a glance Vegeta's way. She knew he could not really go against Cooler lest Frieza hear about it. Swallowing, she took a step forward and put her hand on Vegeta's shoulder. _I'll be fine_.

The prince blinked as Bulma's hand left him. He'd heard her message clearly. She gave him one last look as she stepped over to Cooler. She then winked and then faced the alien. "Let's go," she said with a fake smile.

Vegeta watched the two leave the area with narrowed eyes. Uncrossing his arms, he headed towards the doors of the main hall and entered the room.

* * *

Bulma walked next to Cooler, looking everywhere but at the alien. True to his word, he was taking her back to her chambers. She wondered why he seemed so interested in her. He never had given her much attention before now. He was attempting to make idle chat with her. Her answers were clear, concise, and short. More than anything she just wanted to be out of his presence. There was an eerie sense of calm around Cooler.

"Do you know why I wanted to get you alone, little flower?" Cooler asked.

The question caught Bulma off guard. She finally looked in his direction. "No. I just assumed you wanted to talk to me since you're the only one who really hasn't," she replied.

"I see. The reason I wanted to get you alone is to ask you about my father's last moments." Cooler watched her face closely, but Bulma gave nothing away. "You were the last person he was seen with."

Bulma sighed. "I didn't slip him any poison, if that's what you're asking. I didn't even see when he died. By then I'd already made it back to my quarters. Then I went for a little walk," she said, her voice even.

"Without an escort?" Cooler pried.

"I don't need an escort everywhere I go. It's just that Frieza prefers that I have one. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I'm not as weak as most of you seem to believe I am." Bulma stopped walking as they came up to the doors of her chambers. She turned and faced Cooler. "Well, thank you for bringing me back. Good..."

"One more question, little flower," Cooler said, cutting her off. Bulma nodded and crossed her arms. "What exactly are your powers?"

Bulma bit the inside of her lip. She knew she could not tell him the full scope of her abilities. After all, that was something she didn't even know. She knew Cooler was smarter than he appeared and he would probably know if she was lying. "I am capable of aura reading, psychometry, and telepathy," she said. It was not a complete lie. She was capable of all those things. She conveniently omitted other abilities.

Cooler appeared interested for a moment. "Psychometry?"

"By touching an object I can tell where it's been, who has made contact with it, that sort of thing."

"Like a fortune teller?"

Bulma shook her head in an irritated manner. "No. I don't tell the future of it." She looked around. She reached forward and touched the big blue jewel on Cooler's armor. After a moment of silence, she dropped her hand. "That jewel is from Seigyoku-sei. It is a blood jewel," she said. She was suddenly feeling very sick. The history of that jewel was terrible to say the least.

Cooler seemed impressed. "Seigyoku-sei is indeed a rough place. I would not be surprised if this jewel was acquired through less than savory means. That is quite an interesting ability." A crooked smile appeared on his face. "This is where I bid you goodbye. Hopefully we can have many more of these talks." He turned and left her standing at the door.

She watched him turn the corner before going into her chambers and locking every lock. _If he wanted to he could just blast it open_, she thought grimly. _I couldn't get anything off of him. It was almost as bad as Vegeta, but I could tell he was actively trying to keep me out_.

* * *

"There is a fleet heading towards this planet as we speak. No one knows where Planet One is unless they are given direct access codes. It is surrounded by a cloaking shield that is impenetrable. Only three people have these codes and one of them is dead. So how is it that someone has diffused the cloaking device and is less than two days away?" Frieza's voice was very calm despite his obvious irritation.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. _Two days? That woman said we had six days. How in this godforsaken galaxy did the fool shave off four days_?

"This planet is my home. It is my sanctuary; my place of zen. I do not come here to wage war, but apparently some upstart thinks he can. So," Frieza faced them all in his floating chair, "does anyone care to explain this strange phenomenon?"

The room was silent except for the breathing of several very nervous soldiers. Frieza glowered down at all of them while tapping his finger against the edge of his chair. _These are the men in my employ? What sniveling bunch of cowardly assholes_, he thought angrily. He noticed three men who were actively avoiding looking in his direction. _I should have Bulma come down here and flush out the treacherous scum. Then again, I haven't killed anything in a few days_. He spotted Vegeta leaning against the wall near the main doors to the hall. He caught the prince's eye and beckoned him forward. The prince uncrossed his arms and moved to the front of the room.

"Vegeta, you wouldn't know who happens to be behind this, would you?"

Vegeta smirked. Frieza was just looking for a reason to kill someone. "Whoever looks remotely suspicious I would do away with. Of course, I'm not in charge so you don't have to listen to anything I say," he replied.

Frieza was surprised that Vegeta could read where he was going so quickly with the line of questioning. Snorting, he glanced back over at the cowering three standing closest to the front. Without warning, Frieza shot slightly past Vegeta's head at the three men. The prince never flinched, but he heard the agonizing cries from the three men Frieza obliterated.

"Feel better?" Vegeta asked.

The overlord stared blankly at Vegeta for a moment before smirking in return. "Only a little, monkey prince. Ready your squadron. You'll be taking out the trash. I want the leader of this rogue faction brought in for questioning. Under no circumstances are they to die. I will deal with them personally."

"Why not send Ginyu and his ilk?" Vegeta asked irritably.

Frieza took a long moment to reply. "Because I told you to do it."

* * *

Bulma walked back into her bedroom after a long bath. It was already dark outside. She glanced down at her hands, seeing the pruning of her hands. _Perhaps I was in there a little longer than I initially anticipated_, she mused. She walked to her dresser and dropped the towel covering her as she opened the drawer.

"You really should be more aware of your surroundings, woman."

The telepath jumped nearly a foot in the air before whirling around to see Vegeta sitting on her bed, arms crossed and frown in place. "Damnit, Vegeta!" Bulma picked up the towel and tried to cover herself.

"Woman, I thought we'd already discussed that there isn't an inch of you left to my imagination anymore."

"That's not the point!" Bulma successfully tied the towel back around her. "What are you doing in here anyway? You're lucky Rika is already gone for the night. If she saw you, she'd immediately report you to Frieza." She turned around and went back to looking through the drawer.

Vegeta snorted. "I may be borrowing Kinomi in a couple of days."

Bulma did not turn around. "Why? She'll be out of the tank tomorrow morning and then she'll be back with me. Frieza isn't reassigning her already, is he?"

"In two days, there will be an attack. Frieza has ordered us to neutralize this attack before any serious damage is done. He wants the leader taken into custody so that he may question them."

"Why are you telling me this?" Bulma turned around. She gasped when she saw that Vegeta was directly behind her. She never heard him move.

"I need to know I can trust you."

"Trust me? Why wouldn't you be able to trust me?"

Vegeta continued to stare at her. He took a step forward, backing her into the dresser. He put his hands on the dresser and leaned forward, trapping Bulma. "Can I trust you woman?"

Bulma stared into his eyes. "Yes."

The prince moved in closer to her. Their faces were inches apart. He wanted to make sure absolutely no one would hear what he had to say next. Belatedly, he noticed that Bulma was blushing and smirked. "Listen closely because I will only say this once." He saw her nod slightly, taking care not to move too much lest she kiss him. "I am the leader of a resistance against Frieza. The people who are coming to attack were a part of this resistance, however they have gone rogue and their mission is not part of my larger plan. When I capture this man, Frieza will definitely want you to find out what you can from him. This idiot knows of me, but not my identity. But he knows enough about the resistance to damage our cause. You will need to lie to Frieza."

"Vegeta, Frieza will find..."

"You _must_ lie to him, Bulma. If you don't, you'll never be free. _We'll_ never be free."

Bulma was starting to lose focus on Vegeta's face. Her eyes fell to his lips as she pondered her options. He had just entrusted her with something that could get him and his comrades all killed. More than anything, Bulma wanted to be free. She raised her eyes to his once more. "I will. I will protect you as you have protected me."

Being alone most of her life had taught Bulma to hold on to whatever she could that made her happy. Kinomi and her kin had become her friends. If they were searching for freedom, then she would help with that search. It occurred to her suddenly that Vegeta had not moved away from her. He was still studying her face intensely. Again, she felt her cheeks heat up. A thought occurred to her.

"You said my name," she whispered.

"It is yours, is it not?"

"Say it again."

The request seemed strange to Vegeta. What pleasure could she get from hearing him say her name? "Bulma."

"Vegeta." Bulma cracked a small smile. "You are my chosen. I never thought I'd..." She was silenced with Vegeta's lips finally meeting her own. The kiss was aggressive yet somehow sensual at the same time. It did not last long as Vegeta pulled away before Bulma could really register what was happening.

"I am your chosen."

Then he was gone.


	12. 12: In Action

**Destiny**

**Chapter 12: In Action**

* * *

Kinomi flexed the fingers on her left hand after slipping them into a glove. The one thing she hated most about the healing tanks was the numbness she had for a few hours afterwards. Sighing, she started to wrestle her hair into a decent style when the door to the small room opened. Kinomi craned her neck to see who it was. Chichi was walking over to her briskly. The older woman noticed Kinomi struggling with her mane. She smacked Kinomi's hands away. Sighing, Kinomi slumped her shoulders as Chichi's expert hands started braiding.

"I can't believe you still need me to do your hair," Chichi said.

"I don't _need_ you to do it. If you hadn't noticed, I was working on it just fine. Your assistance was unnecessary," Kinomi snapped back, but she didn't stop Chichi.

Chichi rolled her eyes and continued braiding in silence. After a few moments, she spoke again. "You do know that we have a mission tomorrow, right?"

"I saw the message Geta left in my scouter. Why do we always get the jobs the scrubs can handle? Planet One has guards for this sort of thing," the young princess complained. "Who's going to watch Blue while I'm gone?"

"I'm certain Frieza has his own plans made with her. We're supposed to take the leader of this attack into custody so that Frieza may question him. Or torture. I guess it all depends on how Frieza is feeling." Chichi finished braiding Kinomi's hair and walked around to face the girl. "He might have Bulma there for the interrogation."

Kinomi figured out the implications of this immediately. "Blue said she can't lie to Frieza. He always finds out."

"Well, she's going to try. Vegeta didn't really give her a lot of options," Chichi said.

"Wait!" Kinomi leaned forward. "Vegeta told Bulma about..." She made a motion with her hands. Chichi nodded and the princess smirked. "Well I'll be damned. Looks like he has more trust in her than I thought."

Chichi shrugged. "Perhaps he is too trusting."

"Blue wouldn't hurt a hair on Vegeta's head and vice versa. That reminds me. Perhaps I should get back to doing my job."

* * *

_He's distracted again_, Kakarrot thought as he watched Vegeta spar with his brothers. It still frustrated him that Vegeta would not talk about what was troubling him. The prince had appeared to be getting better, but for whatever it seemed he had regressed practically overnight. Vegeta was never much of a conversationalist to begin with, but he was unusually quiet today. It was like half of his attention was somewhere else. _It's like he's on auto-pilot. This has got to stop_. Kakarrot cracked his knuckles and zipped up to the 2-on-1 spar.

Both Raditz and Turles had to pull their punches to avoid hitting one another. They turned their heads and saw that Kakarrot had tackled Vegeta and taken him down to the floor of the room. The two were now involved in a very heated scuffle. The brothers hung back and watched the youngest of them fight their prince.

"Fifty credits say Kakarrot wins," Turles said.

"You're on," Raditz responded. The two flinched when Nappa smacked them both on the back of their heads. "What was that for?"

"Betting against the prince?" Nappa looked past them at the rowdy brawl going on between the other two men. He stroked his goatee for a moment. "Kakarrot would definitely win this one if Vegeta keeps this shitty performance up."

Vegeta found himself grappling with Kakarrot. "You interrupted my spar with your idiot brothers, Kakarrot. You'll have your time to shine next," he said. Kakarrot snorted and eased up momentarily. Before Vegeta could react, he found himself on his back watching Kakarrot's foot come towards his face. Vegeta reached up and grabbed Kakarrot's foot as it came down. With a jerk, he threw the larger Saiyan away from him and sat up.

As Vegeta was standing, he was tackled again by Kakarrot and his fists. Vegeta fought him off once again and landed a punch square in Kakarrot's face. Kakarrot stumbled backwards before falling on his backside. Vegeta straightened up and saw that Kakarrot's nose was sitting at an odd angle with blood running from it.

"I was wondering when you'd get serious," Kakarrot said while standing. "Ready?"

"I know what you're trying to do, Kakarrot. I'm not going to have a _heart to heart_ with you. Who do you take me for? That wench you follow around?" The words had barely left Vegeta's mouth before he was doubled over from Kakarrot's punch to his gut.

"You will not speak about Chichi that way."

Vegeta spat to the side and stood up straight. "Bastard..."

* * *

Chichi and Kinomi walked in on the scene of Kakarrot and Vegeta pummeling away at each other. Sighing, Chichi started to go after them. Kinomi placed a hand on her shoulder. "They're going to hurt themselves if this gets out of hand. They don't know restraint at all," she said.

"I thought you would've realized by now that this is the way Vegeta communicates his feelings," Kinomi said with a wry smile. "They'll be done in a moment. Plus, judging by Kakarott's stance, I'd say Vegeta said something offensive to you." She laughed at the older girl's facial expression.

The spar ended abruptly when they both stopped on the ground, finding one another in a hold. Kakarrot stared with his eyes narrowed at Vegeta. Finally, he eased up and softened his face. Vegeta released him as well, but remained scowling at him. Kakarrot gave him a goofy smile and clapped him on the back before walking off.

Vegeta crossed his arms and huffed. _As if I would ever do that. You're a fucking idiot, Kakarrot_, he thought.

_Now, now, Vegeta. No need for the name-calling. But, I do think you should act on it_, Kakarrot responded.

The prince continued to scowl and did not send a reply back. He instead noticed his sister standing with Chichi. He gave her a slow once-over. Seeing that she was in fine, he beckoned her over along with Tarble. "Spar," he said simply. The twins exchanged perplexed glances. They almost never sparred with one another. They could count on one hand how many times that had happened before.

Kinomi crossed her arms and shook her head. "No. Tarble is too easy."

"I am not! You're the one who telegraphs every single move you're about to do. I know your whole plan of attack before you even move."

"Ugh! Stay out of my head!"

"Learn to block me out!"

Vegeta grabbed both by their heads and rammed their foreheads together. "Spar," he repeated as he walked past them.

The twins glared at one another again, rubbing their respective foreheads. After a moment, Tarble was dodging Kinomi's attacks with relative ease. He found an opening but Kinomi easily countered him and slammed him into the ground with even more ease. Tarble recovered and went after his sister again. The spar took an interesting turn.

Raditz watched with a rather critical eye. On the rare occasions when the twins did spar, the victor was always Kinomi. Tarble was never aggressive enough to beat his sister even with his superior speed. But as the current spar was folding out, either Tarble was being super-aggressive and it caught Kinomi off guard or Kinomi was fighting with fear. Something was clearly bothering her. Her style was 100% aggression at all times; no backing down and no retreat. _Defensive_ was something Kinomi did not understand. She was always offensive.

At the moment, she was not. It showed and it showed in the way even the simplest techniques were coming to her.

_I'm losing this_, Kinomi thought as she blocked her brother's leg with her knee. She spun around to kick him with her free leg, but she only connected with air. Tarble appeared behind her and she barely had time to block properly. The punch broke through her defenses and he sent her flying backwards.

"This isn't like Kinomi at all. What's with the tame attacking? Normally she's close to berserker even when she spars. Right now it's as if she's second-guessing everything," Kakarrot observed.

"That's because she is," Vegeta mumbled as he watched Kinomi recover slowly. She had a busted lip, but she was no worse for wear. Had Zarbon's attack on her caused more than physical damage?

_I can't lose this. I never lose_, Kinomi told herself. She brought herself up to her full height. She saw Tarble looked stunned at his accomplishment. She took a single step forward with her right foot and then disappeared from Tarble's sight. The younger prince jumped up and away to avoid Kinomi's smash coming from above. Instead, her foot cracked the flooring of the room. She looked up and took off after her twin. _I will not lose this_.

* * *

Bulma awoke with a start the next day. There was something strange about the area around her. Something was off. Bulma sat up quickly and looked around. It was barely morning and the planet's sun's light was beginning to seep through the curtains. There was nothing out of place and there was no one in her room. She stood up and made her way to the bedroom door. Before she started to open it, she heard a small noise that sounded like a cross between a choke, cough, and a sob. Bulma opened the door and stood there for another moment. Then she ventured out towards the living room.

Kinomi sat on a couch in the dim room. She was staring straight ahead at the wall. Bulma made her way slowly towards the couch across from where Kinomi sat. The telepath had seen neither hide nor hair of any Saiyan the previous day. She'd spent the day in her room, even though Kinomi was supposed to return after her stint in the healing tank. Bulma sat down and said nothing. She did give Kinomi a quick once-over, though.

The Saiyan princess appeared to be okay. She had retained the scar on her face, but she looked none the worse for wear. Something was wrong, though. Kinomi's posture was awkward. She appeared to be shrinking away from Bulma. The younger girl always sat so proudly; her head held high and with an air of superiority about her. That was all absent from her at the moment. Bulma remained silent, though.

After a few minutes of complete silence, Kinomi inhaled. "I trained all day yesterday. I wasn't strong enough," she said simply. Bulma waited a moment to see if there was anything that was going to follow that statement. Kinomi sighed and looked down at her hands. "I should've been stronger. I'm a Saiyan female. I should've been stronger."

Bulma cleared her throat, gaining Kinomi's attention. "Stronger? You're already very strong. Why would you need to be stronger?" she asked.

Kinomi stared blankly at Bulma for a moment. "Because I was weak." She could see that Bulma had no idea what she was talking about. "I'll be the first to admit that Saiyans were not the most _civilized_ of races. Nappa said that was something we owned. We could be barbaric, but that was our prerogative. Saiyans are warriors first and everything is a battle for us. Saiyan women are supposed to be the strongest."

Bulma did not like where Kinomi was going with this conversation. However, it looked like it was something she needed to get off her chest. "What do you mean by that?"

"Everything was about dominance or a way to show you were superior to the next person. Your pride was as important as the air you breathed and the blood that pumped through your veins. Do you know what the most common way of attaining a mate was in ancient times?"

"I'm sure you're going to enlighten me, but I'm also sure I won't like what I hear."

Kinomi smirked. "Nappa said that men would simply force themselves on the woman of their desires. If she could fight him off with success, then she would prove to be the strongest and he would not be her mate. She could even go so far as to kill him for attempting such a thing. Nappa told me that is why female Saiyans are the fiercest. Saiyan women had to learn to fight from birth; fight for their honor." She paused for a moment. "I wasn't strong enough to defend my own honor."

Bulma took in her words. Kinomi was blaming herself. "He can only besmirch your honor if you allow him to. You're stronger than that. Besides," Bulma moved to the couch where Kinomi sat, "have you seen his face lately? I swear it looks like someone took a bite out of his nose."

"It wasn't that good." Kinomi looked a Bulma out of the corner of her eye. "It was pretty tough. It definitely could've used some sort of tenderizer," she said thoughtfully.

* * *

Vegeta stood on a plateau near the fortress. He could sense the fleet nearing Planet 1. They would be there within the hour. He did not move when he heard movement behind him. His eyes stayed trained on the orange sky. _This type of work is beneath me. I should kill this bastard just to spite Frieza_, the prince thought darkly. He sighed and finally looked away from the sky.

"Done brooding?" Juu stood there looking at Vegeta. She was fiddling with a scouter. Vegeta recognized it as his own. She pushed a few buttons on it before tossing it to him. "I added a few things to it. It should help you see those ships. Right now you can only feel the fleet's presence. But can you see them?" she asked, gazing off at some point past him.

Vegeta looked to where she was looking. He saw nothing. Then he put on the scouter and turned it on. Red dots started popping up all over the small screen. "This is a much larger fleet than what I initially thought. Impressive that this idiot could amass such a following in such short time."

"Yamcha can talk a good game, Vegeta. It's one of his many talents. Backing that talk up is what his problem is." Juu turned to walk away. "I'll be seeing you."

"Is there any special weaponry I should know about?" he asked quickly.

Juu stopped to think. "I highly doubt he's acquired it, but we were looking into ki suppressors of some sort. If he were to have any now, they would only be little guns. We've no way to use that type of weapon on a large scale yet." She turned to see Vegeta's eyes narrowed dangerously. "What?"

"You do realize that energy suppressors will also hinder my ability to fight, right?"

"Yes. But they're only guns and you can move faster than the speed they shoot at. So... dodge." She turned a walked directly off the plateau. Vegeta's frown deepened and he saw her land gracefully on the ground 500 feet below him. He turned to look back out at the incoming fleet.

_Let's get this over with_.

* * *

Bulma sat outside the Saiyan house, watching the sky. She did not know what she was looking for. She was not even sure that she could see anything outside the atmosphere of Planet 1. Bulma knew one thing, though. _This day is not going to end well_, she thought sourly. She inhaled deeply and started to stand. Just as she was about to pull herself up to her full height, something was inches away from her. Bulma wobbled and tried to keep her balance but she lost the battle. A hand closed around her flailing right arm and pulled her back upright.

"Silly woman," Vegeta said. He tried not to laugh at the frustrated expression she was giving him. She pulled her arm from his grasp and punched him in the chest. He noticed her bite her lip. Crossing his arms, Vegeta just watched her try to keep a straight face. After a solid minute, she caved and began rubbing her hand.

"What the hell are you made of? I almost broke my damn knuckles!" Bulma held her hand close to her chest. "I think my fingers are numb."

"That should teach you to keep your hands to yourself. Why are you here? Shouldn't you be in your rooms or with Frieza?"

Bulma lowered her hand and stood up straight. "Kinomi said she doesn't trust anyone in the fortress while there is an attack going on. People could start panicking... I could get lost in the fray... Yadda yadda yadda... So she thinks I'm safer here until you guys get done. We'll all go to Frieza after this and everyone will be happy." She gave him a smile.

Rolling his eyes, Vegeta started to step around her. Bulma watched him head into the house and start barking orders. One minute later, Raditz and his brothers stumbled outside. Tarble followed with Nappa and Kinomi. Vegeta came outside again. Bulma noticed they all wore their scouters. Vegeta gave them another order and they all began adjusting the scouters accordingly. Then they all looked towards the sky.

"Those are the ships. No one else knows this frequency so don't tell anyone about it."

"Nice cloaking system," Tarble said in wonder. "There's tons of them. We're going to take on an entire army by ourselves?" He turned to look at Vegeta. The elder prince just narrowed his eyes, telling Tarble that his question was stupid. "I guess we are."

"So what's the plan of attack?" Turles asked, still staring up at the sky. "Tarble's right. There's tons of them. It seems to be mostly fighter ships, though. So what's the plan?"

"Kinomi and Tarble," Chichi stepped outside, making sure her scouter was secure on her face. On her left eye, she wore something similar to a scouter but it was far smaller. It barely covered her eye, but Bulma could see it was also showing her information on the small, thin screen.

"Yeah?" Kinomi looked back at Chichi.

"Take out the fighter ships. Lead them away from the larger ships. Kakarrot and Turles, if anything else comes out of those ships shoot them down. Raditz and Nappa, take out the surrounding larger ships but **NOT** the main flagship. Vegeta and I will take the main ship and search for the leader. Juu gave me the correct signature to look for. Now get going." As soon as she was done talking, the other six took off, leaving Bulma standing with Chichi and Vegeta.

"So what do I do?" Bulma asked quietly.

Chichi finally took notice of Bulma. "Stay here and stay out of sight. If a ship somehow gets passed us, they're more likely to head for the fortress than here. Do you have something to defend yourself with?" She saw Bulma pick up a small but powerful gun that the soldiers who lacked the skill of energy manipulation used. Chichi nodded. "Well, go hide. We'll be back to get you and take you to Frieza."

Bulma watched Chichi take off. She watched her fly off before looking at Vegeta. She still couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong. "Watch out for yourself out there," she said. She did not know what else to say.

"Woman, no one up there can touch me. The only thing I'll need to watch is keeping dirt off my boots." Vegeta smirked and unclipped his cape. "Hold this." He tossed his cape to Bulma and walked away. After taking 5 paces, he took off after Chichi.

* * *

Tarble flew next to his sister. She had been silent the entire way. They were getting closer to their opposition and they had yet to discuss how they were going to approach it. "We work together, Kinomi. This will go by much faster if we do that," he said loudly. He saw his sister look at him out of the corner of her eye. She nodded subtly before dropping below the clouds. Smiling, Tarble followed after her.

It only took the fleet moments to notice the two small Saiyans flying towards them. A few broke the formation. Kinomi saw Tarble about to follow and shook her head. "Keep to the ones closest to the main ships. If we head towards them first, they will all scatter and leave the larger ships for the others. I'll take the left," Kinomi said. Tarble nodded and they split up just as the fighters opened fire.

Kakarrot saw the flashing lights off just ahead of them as they levitated in the sky. "Looks like they've started the attack on Kinomi and Tarble," he said.

"That's our cue." Turles looked over at his brother. "Let's get started." The two began to drop below the clouds. Once past them, they saw that the majority of the smaller ships were flying around, trying in vain to avoid or kill the younger set of twins. The larger ships were mostly left unattended except for one or two stationed alongside them. Turles found this strange. "Looks like our job will be fairly easy."

Kinomi dropped down into one of the fighter ships, going straight through the roof and into the small cockpit. The rebel inside screamed and tried to right the ship. Kinomi strolled up to the seat, took the rebel by the head, and snapped his neck. The ship began losing altitude. Kinomi blasted her way out of the ship as it began a fast descent to the ground. "They're pathetically weak," she said to no one in particular.

"That doesn't mean you should let your guard down," Tarble replied in her scouter.

"Whatever." Kinomi turned her body just as two purple lasers shot directly through her. Up until that point, the ships had only been shooting yellow lasers at them. Those lasers had managed to burn or chip away at their armor, but were far too weak to do any real damage to a Saiyan. But these lasers appeared to do absolutely nothing. Kinomi looked for where the lasers had come from. One of the flagships had shot at her. "Kakarrot, I thought you guys were supposed to be taking care of them!"

"Not us! That's Nappa and Raditz's job!" Kakarrot responded quickly.

Rolling her eyes, Kinomi started to move again. Her eyes widened when she suddenly felt her ki plunge into near nonexistence. The feeling was similar to when Zarbon had injected her with the relaxant, only this time her muscles did not relax. Instead, she tensed up as she realized that she was about to plummet to her death. Flying required ki and without it she was no more mobile than Bulma was. As she began falling, a fighter ship slammed into her body, knocking her out. Her scouter fell from her head.

Everyone winced as they heard the high-frequency scratching in their scouters. Nappa looked around as he landed on one of the large ships. "What the hell was that?" He turned to look at Raditz. The other man was squinting at some point in the distance. Then he disappeared. "Raditz, get back here!"

Raditz plowed through the fighter ships, easily taking out ten on his lightning-speed descent. Right before she crashed into the rocks below, Raditz caught Kinomi. She was unconscious and it looked like she had a concussion. Other than that, she was fine and alive. But there was something strange about her. _Her ki is off_, he thought. It was there, but it seemed like it was being contained. _A limiter_...

"Guys, we have a problem! They have limiters!"

* * *

Cooler could see the fighting going on in the distance. He turned his head to look at his younger brother. Frieza appeared unconcerned and was instead enjoying a glass of wine. "You are not in the least bit interested in the outcome of this battle? You are that confident that the Saiyans have this all under control?"

"Of course. What kind of leader would I be if I didn't trust my men to do their jobs properly? The Saiyans have never failed before and they won't fail now. Not if they value their princess' life," the overlord replied coolly. "Besides, metal ships and guns are no match for the raw power a Saiyan possesses."

"You're actually praising them. This is rare."

Frieza chuckled softly. "Cooler, even I can recognize and appreciate strength where it lies. They will never be as strong as you or even me, but the Saiyans do have respectable power. One would have to be ignorant to deny it."

"Ah, so that would be the reason you eradicated the rest of their race? Still, I wouldn't leave everything up to them. That's an entire army that eight people are taking on."

"I never knew you were so concerned, brother." Frieza looked over at him. "You're not growing soft, are you? Don't worry. You'll have your pet soon enough. Vegeta won't allow her to die."

Cooler tapped his finger on the railing of the balcony he stood on. "You haven't even told them yet, have you?" He saw Frieza smile and take another sip of his wine wordlessly. "I see." As the words left his mouth, several explosions rocked the fortress. Just as it was registering for Frieza and Cooler, several more explosions went off. The brothers looked at one another, confused by the sudden turn of events.

* * *

Bulma could see the ships clearly now. She saw the fighting and the flashing lights. She wondered if the leader had been captured yet. She wondered if everyone was doing well in their battles. She wondered if Kinomi was doing okay. Mostly, she wondered how Vegeta was doing. Squinting, Bulma tried to see more clearly through the window.

_Is it just me or are they getting closer_? she mused. Without warning, an explosion of some sort sent her tumbling to the floor. Groaning, Bulma made it back to her feet. She went to the front door and stepped out onto the porch. She glanced towards the fortress and saw the smoke a flames. A few more explosions went off, causing more small tremors. _What the hell? Did some of those ships make it past them_? Bulma looked back towards the fighting.

A bright light shot down from the largest of the ships. It seemed to go all the way to the ground. For a moment, nothing happened. Bulma had to grab hold of the door in order to stay afoot as the next tremor shook the house. This tremor was far more violent than the ones that came from the fortress. It started off small and faint before growing into something earth-shattering. Bulma spotted cracks moving along the dusty ground that surrounded the house.

"What is going on?" she whispered.

Noise from the other side of the house startled Bulma. She listened closely and then heard voices. There was someone inside the house. Squeezing the small gun in her hand, Bulma slid down against the wall by the front door.

"There's no one here!"

"Maybe they're the ones that Frieza sent to attack the fleet."

"He should've sent regular soldiers. The limiters will easily do away with the Saiyans. Without their power they're just as weak as the next common man."

_Three. There's three of them_, Bulma thought. She heard footsteps coming towards the front door. Raising the gun, Bulma pointed it up. As soon as the screen door opened, she pulled the trigger. Blood sprayed on her face as the soldier dropped to the floor. Bulma had little time to dwell on her kill. She scooped up the two weapons the dead man had and crawled back inside. The other two had heard their friend's demise and were coming to spy. Bulma hid behind a couch and waited.

"What the hell happened to him? I thought no one was here!"

"Obviously that isn't the case, is it? Be on your guard. We don't know what..." The one speaking didn't finish as Bulma shot him through the head. Having seen where the shot came from, the remaining intruder pulled his weapon and began shooting towards Bulma. She ducked behind the couch and scurried away as he kept shooting. He shot the weapon from Bulma's hand. Wincing, she grabbed the dead man's weapon and shot it at the other man. After a few misses, she managed to hit him in the arm and the chest. It was difficult shooting with her left hand. The other man shot the weapon from her, injuring her hand once more. Before she could turn and run, the man had her pinned against the wall with his gun to her head.

It took him a moment to recognize her. "You're Frieza's little bitch. What are you doing out here by yourself? You're supposed to be in your room. This is definitely a surprise and it kills two birds with one stone," he said with a grin. Bulma remained silent and took the time to get a good look at him. He was much taller than she was; perhaps Nappa's height. He was not nearly as muscle-bound, though. Instead he was thin and lanky. His species remained a mystery to her, but he could have belonged to either the Saiyan or human races. He shook Bulma, knocking her head against the wall. "Are you going to answer my question?"

Bulma raised her eyes to his. She then shook her head. He released her and his hand went across her face. Bulma fell to the left. She tried to break her fall but her bloody and burnt hands prevented her from doing so. Moaning in pain, Bulma rolled over and kicked the man as hard as she could. He ended up on the floor as well. Without the use of her hands, Bulma scooted against the wall, putting distance between them.

"You little bitch!" He aimed his weapon at Bulma. She did not blink as he pulled the trigger. She could see the red laser ready to leave the gun. Instead, it remained in the barrel. The gun backfired violently on the man, sending him flying to the other end of the room. His arm and half of his torso was missing, but he was certainly dead.

Bulma released the breath she had been holding. She felt something warm running from her nose. She raised her right hand and smeared blood onto it. _Another nosebleed. I guess that required more effort than I thought_. She got to her feet and went in search of something to dress her wounds with.

* * *

The limiters caused the Saiyans to tread much more carefully. Almost every fighter ship had been destroyed. Getting close to the main ships had proven to be much harder. The guns on the ships were not destructive. If one of the Saiyans was to get hit by a shot from one of them, they would immediately be zapped of their ki, unable to use it. The effect would not be permanent, but even a Saiyan could die from a fall from the sky.

"If we can't get close to the main flagship, we can't get the leader," Chichi said.

"I'm more concerned with what's happening to this planet." Vegeta was levitating above a large crater. There was a hole at the bottom of it. Through this hole was what looked like lava starting to seep through it. "If I didn't know any better I'd say that this planet is about to be destroyed."

Chichi stared at him skeptically. "That little blast is destroying the planet? How is that possible? There is nothing capable of doing such a thing." Vegeta gave her a look and Chichi rolled her eyes. "I mean there's no machinery that I know of with that ability."

"Until today there was also nothing larger than a handgun that could be used as a ki suppressor but that changed in a hurry, didn't it?" Vegeta turned to look at the fortress. "I'd say this attack is more than just this fleet of ships. This was definitely an inside job."

"You think it was that woman?"

Vegeta did not answer right away. Instead, he continued to look off in the distance towards the fortress. "No. I believe her when she said she had nothing to do with this. I believe we can use this situation to our advantage, though. Call the others back and head to the hangars at the fortress. This planet is done for."

Chichi watched Vegeta take off for their home. Biting her lip, she contacted the others. "Change of plans. Head towards the fortress' hangars. Vegeta is up to something."

* * *

"This is a most precarious situation, brother. Who knew you had rebels right under your nose. I guess you can't find good help anywhere these days." Cooler was watching some of Frieza's men battling outside of the fortress. By now the fortress was in shambles. Cooler could see the ground starting to break up outside. "I do believe this planet is becoming a little unstable."

Frieza grunted and poured himself more wine. "I'll leave eventually. I'm waiting for someone," he said lackadaisically.

"Ah yes. You're waiting on Bulma, right? We can't leave without your moneymaker. But what about Vegeta? Are you willing to throw him to the dogs already? You haven't even carried out your plans with him."

The overlord laughed. "Brother, if there's one thing I've learned about Saiyans it's that they're exceedingly hard to kill. Their survival instinct is second to none."

"And yet, a measly eight remain," Cooler said.

"Perhaps I should rephrase that. _Vegeta_ is exceedingly hard to kill. The monkey would sooner talk himself to death than be killed by something as insignificant as a planet exploding. There are far more glorious ways to die and that is not one of them." Frieza sat his glass down as Zarbon came in the room. The green-haired man wore a face mask of sorts to hide his disfigurement. His knuckles were red with blood but he looked unscathed. "Well where is she?"

Zarbon sighed. "She wasn't there. No one was there, not even her maid," he replied slowly.

Frieza's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean _she wasn't there_? Where else could she be? She's supposed to be in her quarters. Did she just up and leave? Unless she has gained the ability to teleport from planet to planet, she should still be within this area. Find her and do it quickly."

"But my lord, do you not think it wise to..."

"You try my patience, Zarbon. Go find her and bring her to me." Frieza's tone left no more room for rebuttal. Zarbon nodded and headed back out of the room.

* * *

Bulma bent down to retrieve one of the weapons left over from the earlier firefight. Her hands were wrapped with gauze. The pain had subsided some but it still hurt to bend her fingers. She walked to the front door, stepping over the dead men as she did so. As soon as she got outside, she was wobbling back from a body suddenly being directly in front of her. Again, her fall was stopped by a hand grabbing onto her arm.

"Woman, you really should be more..." The words died on Vegeta's lips as he took in the sight behind Bulma. He then looked at her. She appeared a bit tired and her hands were clearly injured but she seemed fine. "We're leaving."

The words took Bulma by surprise and she looked at him strangely. "What? Leaving? Where are we going?" she asked. Vegeta scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her completely. "Vegeta, tell me where we're going!"

"It's a surprise." He took to the sky.

* * *

_I cannot believe that asshole has me running away like this_, Juu thought angrily. Her ladies were in the process of stealing a small ship from the hangar to escape in. Those who weren't fighting off the rebels were trying to get away. Juu had no intention of fighting a battle that wasn't her own. She wondered for a moment how the Saiyans were faring and found herself hoping they would come away from this unscathed. _Vegeta cannot be happy with this turn of events in the least_.

"We're ready to go, Juu," Mai called from the door to the ship. Juu nodded and turned around. Before she could take a step, she was being held against the wall clear across the hangar. Mai yelled out and the rest of the women came running. They were stopped by Nappa and Turles.

Chichi did not like how calm Juu looked. "I can snap your neck in ten different ways. Tell me the truth. Did you know anything about the extent of this attack?" she asked.

Juu stared down at her. She took hold of Chichi's hand and pulled it away from her. Chichi's breath caught; she was surprised by the strength Juu had. Juu eased up off the wall and straightened her clothes. "I told you everything I knew. I'm sure not even my brother knew the entire plot of Yamcha's idiocy. I am just as surprised by all of this as you are," she answered tersely.

"I don't believe you."

"I don't need you to. If I were you, I'd get off this planet. If I'm not mistaken, the planet's core has been compromised and it will not last too long." Juu glided past Chichi. When she made it back to the ship, she saw Raditz holding Kinomi in his arms. "She was shot with a limiter?" she inquired. Raditz nodded. Juu boarded the ship. When she returned a moment later, she held a bag of little white cubes.

"What's that for?" Tarble asked, taking it from Juu.

"It's sugar cubes. She'll need a sugar rush when she wakes up. I don't know how much she'll need so I'll just give you the entire bag. Sugar is easy enough to come by." Juu turned around and boarded the ship. "See you soon," she threw over her shoulder.

The Saiyans watched as the ship started and flew out of the hangar. Just as it was gone, Vegeta appeared with Bulma in his arms. He sat Bulma down and the telepath ran to where she saw the unconscious Kinomi. She looked over the younger girl. Seeing that she would be fine, Bulma breathed a sigh of relief.

"What now?" Kakarrot asked after a long moment of silence.

"Get in pods and leave the planet. The crust is already starting to break apart. We need to leave now." Vegeta walked over to a control panel. Eight pods rolled onto the loading bay. "Our destinations are out of the PTO's range but they're all different. It would be best if we did not travel as one big group."

Nappa looked down at Bulma. "What about this one?"

"She's coming as well."

"You can't be serious, Vegeta! Frieza will search for her personally and he will not stop until he finds her. She'll just attract him to us!" Turles said loudly.

"And what do you propose? We just leave her here to die? We don't even know if Frieza will bother to come looking for her," Chichi said.

"We are not the girl's caretaker. She is nothing but trouble," Nappa spoke up.

"Are you guys seriously considering just leaving Bulma here?" Kakarrot asked.

"She isn't our responsibility!"

Bulma listened to her Saiyan friends argue about what to do with her. She wanted to speak up about her position on it. No one ever asked her if she wanted to tag along in the first place. Why were they fighting about it? She opened her mouth to speak but Vegeta beat her to it.

"Silence!" he yelled. Everyone stopped screaming at one another and looked to their leader. "The woman is coming with us and that's final. Now get in your pods. We're splitting up randomly so I don't know who will end up with..."

_Shit_, Bulma thought. She turned her head towards the doors to the hangar.

"Zarbon's coming!" she yelled. Those two words set everyone into motion. The pods were off in a matter of minutes. Raditz stuffed Kinomi in one and made sure it was sent off properly. After he left, only Vegeta and Nappa remained. Bulma was squeezing her weapon, ready for anything to come through the door.

"Get in your pod, Nappa. You can't take Zarbon. Then I'd end up having to defend both you and that weak woman," Vegeta said, still programming his own pod. A rumble passed through the hangar. The planet was getting more and more volatile. "That's an order, Nappa."

The older man stared at his prince before turning his sights on the blue-haired young woman watching the door nervously. His eyes shifted back to Vegeta. "I expect to see you soon, my prince." The surly Saiyan stalked over to his pod and sat down in it hard. The door closed in and in seconds it was off.

Vegeta rolled his eyes and he continued programming his pod. He finally got another pod to come down to the hangar. Just as he started to program it for Bulma, Zarbon came through the door. He immediately zoomed past Bulma and tackled Vegeta. The Saiyan prince growled as he felt something drill into his side. How had he not sensed Zarbon's attack? He could hear Bulma screaming as he fell to the ground.

Bulma pulled the trigger on her gun multiple times. Each went through Zarbon but did nothing to him. He looked down at the Vegeta and gave a small chuckled before rounding on Bulma. Bulma pulled the trigger again and again. Still, nothing happened. Then she noticed it. Zarbon's aura disappeared. She backed up as he approached her. He had not yet noticed it.

"Frieza's been looking for you, little witch. Why is it that you're never where you're supposed to be?" Zarbon asked. He reached out and took hold of Bulma's arm. Just as he did so, Vegeta pulled him back and knocked him to the ground. The mask broke and fell away from his face. "You're supposed to be dead!"

Vegeta spat blood to the floor. He was bleeding profusely from a wound on his right side. He held it gingerly, trying to quell some of the bleeding. "I like to think I'm built tough. It will take far more than a measly sneak attack to do away with me," he said. Vegeta stalked over to him and kicked him in the face, breaking his nose once again and knocking him out. "That was easier than it should have been," he mumbled.

Bulma rushed over to him. "I think I picked up a limiter." She held up her weapon. "I must've shot him twenty times with it," she said. "Vegeta, you're hurt."

He shrugged off her help. "I should kill this bastard."

"Then do it or I will," Bulma said. She glanced down at Zarbon, searching for his heartbeat.

"No. His life belongs to Kinomi." Vegeta went into a coughing fit. Bulma saw he was hacking up more and more blood. He collapsed into her. "Pod..." he whispered.

Bulma helped drag Vegeta to the pod. With her sore hands, the process probably took longer than it should have. She tied his cape around his wound, helping to quell the bleeding. Then she practically pushed him down into the pod. A violent quake shook the hangar. The building itself was starting to come apart. Bulma dodged falling debris and saw that the control panel had been destroyed. There was no way of programming her own pod. Taking a deep breath, she climbed into Vegeta's pod. He was already hooked up to the life support system.

"Woman, what are you..."

"There's no time. This place is falling apart." Bulma pressed a few buttons to close the pod. Despite the small area, she and Vegeta fit in the pod remarkably well. "Here we go," she whispered as the door started to close.

She could not believe it. She was escaping again. But this time, she was not alone.


End file.
